


Lie to Me

by deadlikemoi



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alpha Ben Solo, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ben Solo chomp champ 2k19, Ben Solo in plaid, Brief Ben/Paige, Brief Rey/Hux, Cheating, Eventual Smut, F/M, Gun Violence, Hux is a filthy liar, Lots of adultery, Masturbation, Omega Rey, Polar Opposite of Slow Burn, Rey needs an education, Soft boi Ben Solo, There's stormpilot now, Too Much Plot Too Little Porn, We're finally hearing wedding bells, legal stuff, reactive heat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-05-13 08:51:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 37,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14745722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deadlikemoi/pseuds/deadlikemoi
Summary: Rey's husband told her they were both Betas. She met an Alpha who taught her the truth.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Adam Driver in plaid is the whole reason I started writing this.

Rey woke up that morning with a smile, stretching her tense muscles out as her husband stirred beside her. "Hello, gorgeous," he whispered against her bare shoulder. This was their second full day in their new home; a beautiful craftsman style that spent too much time in disrepair. They spent quite a bit of money to buy this; Armitage and his Rey needed a place to begin their family and watch it grow. 

She pecked his lips once and struggled out of his arms and disappeared into the en-suite bathroom. "Remember the contractor is stopping by this morning, darling! We need to be decent enough to go over the plans." A groan greeted her words from the other room. 

They spent months looking for the right house. It wasn't just a building for all their things, it was a project for her. Rey graduated from university with a degree in interior design, but had yet to use it. One of the promises he made during the lead up to their wedding, three months past now, was that she could build her portfolio here. The contractor he hired agreed to follow her direction. Today was the first step and she had a lot of bounce in her step. 

Rey didn't have the normal childhood most people did; she was orphaned early in life which meant a disruption to her education while she lived on the street. 

She met Armie by happenstance. She was leaving the diner where she worked when she noticed one of the tires on her less than dependable car was flat. She had no cellphone, she had no lifeline, she barely made rent each month. Everything went into school and keeping the scholarship that kept her there. He found her crying on the ground next to her car and almost spilled his coffee all over himself out of sheer shock. 

He is her sweet Beta husband and she his loving Beta wife. Now life is simple.  
______________________________________

Ben Solo came highly recommended. He wasn't one of those guys who purchased billboards or the sides of buses to promote his business. Instead, he relied on the references of past customers to bring in new clients. 

The houses in Varykino were old and expensive. They generally stayed in families for generations and few were empty for an extended period of time. The contract with Mr. and Mrs. Hux was signed and the check already had his signature on the back. He could entertain a little housewife who wanted to play at being a professional while she sat at home all day, wasting her rich husband's money. That was fine with him. No skin off his teeth. 

The house looked awful from the street. The wood-shingle siding was rotting away, an awful color anyway, but it made the house itself look much older than it actually was. He looked over the information they provided as part of their initial request: newlywed Beta couple, homemaker wife, ad executive husband. It all screamed boring, but it also yelled easy paycheck to him so of course he accepted. 

His hand ran through his long black hair, still slightly wet from the end of his rather rushed shower. The beginning of it, with his own beta girlfriend, was fast paced in a completely different way. Alpha male and Beta female relationships were the norm in society now. Biologically speaking, he was meant to be mated with an Omega female. The rare Omega females were kept away from the general population of society; they were too treasured for their ability to procreate easily. She made him coffee before he left and ran her hands over his sturdy chest, covered in his favorite plaid button down. A smile lifted the right side of his mouth in a grin, remembering that she promised to cook dinner, his favorite, that night. 

The clock on the dashboard of his pick-up truck flipped forward to 10:01. Time to get this over with, he told himself, as he grabbed all his materials and climbed out of the car. Being the modern day man that he is, Ben had forgone the printed CAD renderings of the house and simply carried his iPad with him. He could make changes with a few touches of his stylus and have them looking at the updated version in minutes instead of days. 

The chipped blue front door opened before his hand was in the air to strike the knocker against the metal plate below it. "Mr. Hux?" Ben said, his hand held out to grasp the ginger haired man's. "Just call me Hux, please come in." The homeowner led him into the kitchen where his wife was setting out three cups for coffee before coming around the center island to shake his hand as well. "I'm Rey Hux, nice to meet you. Coffee?"

Ben accepted the mug and glanced around the rooms and hallways he'd walked through. "Thanks," he drank more coffee in a day than water, "can you give me a tour and a general idea of what you'd like to do before I show you the plans I drew up?" They spent the next hour slowly moving through all the rooms in the house from the basement to the attic. Most younger couples wanted to flip older houses into some modern catastrophe, so he was almost shocked when she spoke of bringing it back to its former glory in painstaking detail. The digital blueprints matched most of what she discussed except that he'd removed a lot of the interior walls. Most would have to be rebuilt to fully carry the weight of the second floor and attic without buckling. 

A nagging voice whispered in the back of his mind the longer he stayed in that house. Something about Mrs. Hux - Rey, she had asked him to call her -bothered him. He couldn't put his finger on it exactly. Her voice was rhythmic and cheery especially when they spoke about the fireplace in the living room and how she wanted the horrible granite mantle removed as soon as possible. Ben excused himself to the bathroom after the third cup of coffee and his head cleared when he breathed in the air in the small room. What was going on? Something wasn't right...

Hux left as Ben finished up the last of his notes and verified the planned start date with Rey. He had lots of work to do before he and his crew started next week. With a promise to send her new blueprints for her review, Ben shook her hand one last time, but went stock still as she leaned close to him to open the door. That smell. Her smell. One sniff had all the blood rushing down to his cock immediately and his Alpha instincts were on high alert. But how? "Omega."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We dig a little deeper into all sides of the story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've added tags for the brief mentions of other couples in this story. I don't intend to go into explicitly detail about either Hux/Rey or Ben/Paige. There are quite a few liberties I've taken about the whole alpha/beta/omega dynamic.

Ben's words, and the way he literally stormed out of the house, rang through her head for the rest of the day. As she folded laundry, as she looked at paint colors, and as she made dinner. There was no way she could be an Omega... right? Her education on the hierarchical structure of society was lacking just like the rest of her childhood education was. 

She never had a reason to look up this information before, it was easy to believe Hux when he proselytizes about all the reasons they were meant to be together. Life was a whirlwind at that time. She was swept off her feet, carried away from the rest of the world, and made to stay cooped up in their home while he had a life. It was all a new realization and the dots lined up to form a fucked up path through lies and sorrow. 

Rey sat down at the computer in Hux's office and watched the cursor blink back at her. "Omegas," she said, slowly typing each letter like it was one more step away from the life she'd known for years. The search results were unless. She expected the flashy websites, advertising this scent or that fake gland to fool your partner. Her fingers traced over her own neck and felt the ridges in her own scent gland. Surely everyone had these, but she couldn't remember noticing before. 

"How to know if you're an omega" was the next thing he typed into the search engine. An anatomical picture loaded and pinpointed all the body parts that made an Omega different from a Beta or Alpha. Scent glands? Check. But the next items were less obvious. She had no idea if she was fertile as most Omegas are and she'd never gone through a heat, she'd remember that. 

The online world of user forums was vast and she quickly fell headlong into it. She made mental notes of all the things she'd need to do more research about, more looking into, and as the sun started to set, all her browser history was efficiently deleted. Hux wouldn't be happy to know she was looking into this, but he didn't need to know. 

__________________________________

"Ben Solo Construction." Paige smiled as she went through her normal greeting when answering the office phone for the business her boyfriend created and ran. "May I ask who's calling? Of course, I'll connect you Mrs. Hux." She dialed his cell phone number with the end of the pencil she was using to fill in her sudoku puzzle. Sometimes it was boring being the only one in the office. "Mhm, hi, babe. Your new client is on the phone. Yeah, yeah. I'll put her through."

With a heavy sigh, Ben answered the forwarded call, "What can I do for you, Mrs. Hux?" They weren't meant to speak again until she approved the new designs, so he tried to keep his voice as steady as possible while his mind ran faster than lightspeed. His mind couldn't forget what happened the other day any more than his body could. Already a few days removed and he had no answers, none at all. 

"I need coffee. Will you meet me?" He sighed, running his hand through his long, curly hair while he weighed the situation. It wasn't a good idea, he knew that, but something inside him took the reins of his body and ignored any pleas he attempted to make. "Hutt House. Fifteen minutes." 

Ben arrived first and sat at one of the patio tables, sipping his black coffee while hers sat at the other end of the table, slowly chilling in the crisp breeze. His eyes closed as that sweet scent danced towards him on the wind, immediately announcing her arrival. "What suppressants do you use?" 

The question caught her off guard before she can even pull out the chair to sit down. "S-suppressants? I surely don't know what you mean. I take nothing of the sort." She had done some googling about those, so this was a topic she wasn't so stupid about anymore. "Why did you call me Omega?"

His eyes still hadn't opened, hadn't looked at her, hadn't seen the worry on her face. "That's what you are," his piercing brown eyes finally opened and his pupils dilated immediately, "no Beta smells like that but you must be on something to keep it as hidden as you do."

All she could do was shake her head, her mind unable to force all the muscles to move in a way to manage and process speech. His eyes raked over her body in a manner that would normally have sent her in a fury, made her lose her mind and become indignant, but his own scent calmed her and forced her to recognize that there was something to his words, some truth. "It's clear that I know very little about this," she indicated between herself and him, "so please tell me what you know." 

And so he spilled all the contents of his own mind, speaking for what seemed like hours, and expanded on topics that she asked about. He explained how it was to be an Alpha, what Betas were truly like, and how he came to suspect that she was not what she claimed to be. "Alphas are driven to find their Omega mate, to protect them, and to... breed with them." That sentence hung in the air as if it was difficult to digest for the both of them. 

It surprised her how easy it was to sit and talk with him; the rest of the world took a backseat to whatever was brewing between them at this table until his cellphone chirped. "This is Ben." Paige droned on on the other side of the line, giving him details about a prospective client. He never would've been so annoyed with her before, so why now? "Take down as much information as you can. I'll be back in the office in ten minutes. Thanks, Paige." He gave her a flimsy smile as he pushed his chair back from the table and stood up, "I have to get going, but I'll see you on Tuesday." 

__________________________________

It was all overwhelming, but Rey managed to settle back into her role with ease. It was her life, after all. She went through the motions without a need to think it through. Hux was sweet as always, but something troubled her mind where he was concerned. Could he tell? Was he able to read her mind? 

She found herself second guessing everything now. The small amounts of joy she had now where writing ideas in her battered notebook and spacing out as she thought about working with Ben. Ben Solo. _Alpha._

__________________________________

Hux wasn't a nice guy. Even as a child, he was that child in class who pulled pigtails and put gum in people's hair. It was pathological, ingrained in every code of his dna. Meeting Rey had brought some tenderness to his life. That's why he lied, why he continues to lie every day. The end fully justified the means. Any life he could have would be dark toned without her beautiful smile. 

Not a soul knew that she was an Omega. He didn't even know right away. Her scent gland became more prominent as time went on and he was so lucky he found before anyone could take advantage of her. It was his job to hide her, protect her from the rest of the world and all the terrible Alphas who would destroy her. This was for her own good.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey collects her thoughts with some distance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't write fics on an iphone. I apologize for any errors, it was a bitch formatting this. 
> 
> I'm so appreciative of all the kudos and comments! I won't be responding to comments just yet so I don't give anything away, but thank you all so much!
> 
> Enjoy.

Ben's hair encased his face like the curtains of a theatre bracketing the stage, drawing in the eyes to the main event. It isn't _fair_ , he's too beautiful in his own unique way. 

That train of thought completely derailed Rey that morning. Her inner monologue wanted to wax poetic about his nose that perfectly fit his face and highlighted other features, the beauty marks that needed to be traced with her tongue, and those fucking lips. Fuck those lips! Oh, how she wanted to. 

She sat at the kitchen island, stirring the steel cut oatmeal her husband always prepared for breakfast. His deep voice drifted through the open windows while he gave instructions to his crew and she was intoxicated once again. 

____________________________________

She needed to get away. There were too many unknowns, too many moving pieces, and she couldn't think surrounded by Hux and Ben and all the other people in that house. She didn't need silence, but her brain was rebelling against the constant noise that echoed through the empty house. 

"There's a short conference about new design techniques in Coruscant. I will be gone two to three days, at most." He was always concerned about her going off on her own and that concern never bothered her until now. In the past, she thought of it as a loving gesture, maybe a little overbearing, but still coming from a good place. Now it made her mind run miles a minute. This trip would give her the clear mind she so desperately needed. 

The next morning her bag was packed, car keys in hand, and she stood in the foyer as she tried to extricate herself from her husband's arms. "Love you too," she said as she hurried out the door, almost running headlong into the brick wall that is Ben Solo. His arms caught her as she literally _bounced_ off his strong chest and she was most of the way to the ground before being hauled back up as if she weighed no more than a kite pulled around by the wind. 

Her hands shook and her skin tingled where his hand still lingered His touch short-circuited all her natural processes - she simply couldn't function like she had for all twenty-two years of her life - and it was so difficult, so utterly awful to pull away from him, get in the car, and go away from this completely fucked up situation. 

The longer she spent on the road, the more relaxed she became. All the tension evaporated from her shoulders, her neck, her mind, and the nagging voice in the back of her mind stopped talking for once. 

Her cellphone, suspended above the air vent by two magnets, chimed again and again. With a sigh, she quickly flicked the banner up and turned it to Do Not Disturb mode. She didn't want to feel guilty by bending the truth a little bit. It wasn't a lie per se. There was a conference and she signed up to attend, but it was only scheduled for one day, not three. So she needed some time to search her mind and be away. There was nothing implicitly wrong with that. 

Twelve unread messages, eleven of them from Hux. She couldn't think back to a time in her life when he wasn't there, but she longed for that solitary life now. She'd forgotten herself in the years they spent together, preferring to model herself as the cookie cutter girlfriend then wife instead of Rey, the girl who always managed to keep herself alive one way or another. 

**Unknown Number**  
_I can't get your scent off my mind._

Her heart raced as she continued to read that message again and again. Good lord, that man could set her aflame and she'd thank him for his time. 

**Rey**  
_Who is this?_

**Unknown Number**  
_You know who it is, Rey._

**Rey**  
_How did you get this number?_

**Unknown Number**  
_It's listed on your application for emergencies._

**Rey**  
_Is this an emergency, Mr. Solo?_

**Unknown Number**  
_Is that the question you really want to ask?_

The flush of her skin started on her face and spread down her chest. It could've gone all the way down to her toes if the intensity of it meant anything. 

A quick text was sent to her husband, announcing her arrival in Coruscant, and she threw her phone into her bag a second later. There was no resolve to stay away from one of them if she couldn't separate herself from that device completely. 

That night she thought of him as she laid in the bathtub, her eyes closed when her hands skimmed down her breasts, pausing on her nipples to give them the attention they needed. "Ben..." she whispered, the name falling from her lips when her fingers found their way inside her. It's not hard to imagine him doing this, but two of her fingers barely measure to even one of his. She needed the added friction of fingers on her clit, rolling the hard bundle of nerves in quick circular motions, and her legs came open in an obscene sight that she should have been ashamed of, but she was beyond any care for propriety. 

She cried when she came; the relief of it all was such a burden and a blessing at the same time. 

The next day was all business. She seemed distant from that other woman, removed through years and miles, but she was sobered by this new awakening. 

Rey built new connections with other industry professionals, showed photos of the house to anyone who asked, and described the plans as best she good. It was easy to keep herself away from temptation while the conference kept her busy, but she was still a girl who couldn't stay away from the cookie jar. 

**Rey**  
_I want to taste you on my tongue._  
_____________________________________ 

Paige had seen the text. What came next was a knock down, drag out fight that his heart wasn't in. He wasn't surprised when she walked out. He was surprised that he didn't mind her absence. 

He didn't want Paige the same way he wanted Rey. It was better to hurt her now than to destroy her later. 

**RH**  
_I want to taste you on my tongue._

**Ben**  
_Where are you?_

**RH**  
_Away.  
But I can't stop thinking about you. _

**Ben**  
_Tell me where you are._

For the rest of the night, he begged and pleaded with her. All he needed was an address and he'd be out the door immediately. But it was easier for him, he knew that. 

She had strings and suddenly he was free of them. 

The next morning there was a text from Rey with a dropped pin and a room number. 

It was easy for him to skip a day of work, there were days when it truly was difficult to get in touch with him due to all the projects he juggled and struggled to keep them all in the air. The drive took hours, he imagined her scent pulling him ever closer like a true sense of animal magnetism. 

She left the door propped open just enough so he could sneak in without making much noise, it was still early enough in the day that he wasn't surprised to find her wrapped up in the giant white down comforter, but she looked so much smaller than she really was. 

"Hey." Ben leaned against the doorway with both his hands stuffed into his pockets, his form immediately loosened at the sight of her. 

"Hi," she smiled and rolled over so she laid to one side of the bed instead of in the middle, "come here." 

His hand ruffled his hair, his long and curly mane, while his jaw made a slight movement. "I need you to know - to understand - that if I come any closer, I might not be able to stop myself, to control myself around you." 

Their scents mixed and danced in the air and finally, with a clear head, Rey understood what he meant by those comments about her scent. It was heady, too strong and yet not nearly enough all at once. 

_" _Please_."_

The anchor inside him released, pulled its weight away, and he had no power left in him to resist. Nothing else mattered then, there were no more people aside from the two of them, and the spark when his skin touched hers could have powered an entire continent. 

"Teach me, please, Ben." He stilled next to her, his hand shaking with both adrenaline and anxiety, until he reached out and ran his fingers over the scent gland on her neck, mixing their signatures. "This drives me fucking _wild,_ " and she's boneless from that act. A mere touch melted her into a puddle of wants, needs, desires, a form that wrapped around him as their lips met. 

Words were unnecessary, just a touch was the communication they used. "God, you're off the suppressants. Good Omega." A chill ran through her body. He was pleased, pleased about something she did and though she couldn't comprehend it all, what it meant, she needed more. And it answered questions she didn't want to think about. Speculations about her husband. 

Her resolve withered away as his arms wrapped around her, as his own scent sunk into her every fiber and pore and burned everything away so there was only him and her. Alpha and Omega. A pair. 

The bed was massive, but so was he and she wanted nothing more than to completely drown in him, take the plunge and give herself over to the ebb and flow. And without regret, she jumped. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What does a new day bring?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to give you naughty readers what you wanted so I hope you enjoy!

The first night was simply spent wrapped in each other's arms. She made a joke about finally getting under that delicious plaid shirt and he agreed to let her wear it, only that. 

She felt different the second day, like the arrangement of atoms in her body had shifted to change her just enough to be noticeable to only him. Her scent gland, a part of her body that went unnoticed for the entirety of her life until now, seemed to buzz in his presence. Ben did his best to give it the attention it craved, often running his tongue along it until she couldn't take the feeling any longer, but he was careful not to scent her, as much as she did want that. At least one of them could be sensible. 

"You can't smell too much like me, not yet." His words heated her insides, created a fire that burned harder the longer he laid under her. The unspoken words were always there, the weight on her ring her, but they separated and compartmentalized that part of reality for another day. This was wrong, every second of it, but she needed to experience it just once. 

To be with an Alpha, with Ben, and do right by her biology. 

Rey didn't need to speak. The morning sun brought a new wave of arousal and his barely awake body greeted her with his tented boxer briefs. They behaved last night, but she had no intention of continuing in that same fashion. His body put any classic sculpture to shame and deep down in her subconscious she knew he must be fit, but seeing it and feeling each muscle beneath the pads of her fingers was something else entirely. _"Rey_ ," and her hand drifted under the waistband of his last piece of clothing that shielded him from her eyes and she wanted to cry right then, her hand grasped his hard cock or tried to, but only managed to wrap around a small portion of him. 

Her experience was minimal, singular actually, but her body _needed_ this, to please him, to feel him inside her for as long as he could stay. 

"Show me what you like, Alpha. Show me how to make you feel good."

A loud groan sang his excitement as he lifted his hips to finally remove his briefs and bare himself to her. His hand covered her smaller one, lacing their fingers together, and squeezed her grip as he gave into the rhythm that found him crying out, jerking his hips up, and rumbling through her name until he pushed her away, "I don't want to come yet, baby."

Rey was happy to kiss him for hours, enjoying his own special Ben taste in her mouth as their tongues quarreled, but he had other ideas. His strong arms carried her up to straddle his chest and his eyes enjoyed the wet spot that had developed on her panties. "I need to taste you" and his hands pulled her even closer, to kneel above his face where his nose pressed at her cloth covered clit. 

It wasn't her sexiest pair of underwear, but her mind was worried about much greater things. "I've never...," she was unable to look him in the eyes, instead staring the wall, the ceiling, anything else to hide the crimson color that took over her face. 

" _What?!_ "

An annoyed sound reverberated through her center as his hands went to work completely tearing those panties to shreds. "Ben!" she breathed, the sense of intoxication he stoked in her was too much. She had to choke back a sound, somehow mysterious to her, when his mouth finally connected with her wet cunt. They groaned together - her in ecstasy and him in the sounds of a thirsty man finally tasting water after days of going without - and it was a symphony to his ears. She wondered if he was made of magic, electricity, or some other secret that made her lose her damn mind. And she wondered it all aloud too, then was rewarded with a snicker from him. Any response he tried to make was lost inside her. 

He was an expert with his tongue. 

As new as she was to this particular activity, it didn't take long at all for him to pick up a grueling pace with his tongue on her clit and his fingers pressed inside her. Two of his large fingers were all she could handle and she almost cried when he hit that spot, the one that had her bear down on him even more, and she saw stars, planets, the entire galaxy behind her eyelids. She came before she even realized that she started to climb up to the edge and then was unceremoniously shoved off it. 

Yet again, he handled her like she was weightless and easily deposited her next to him on the bed. She hadn't fully connected with the mattress when her small hands tried to pull him on top of her, losing that battle valiantly until he took pity and leaned most of the way over, just enough to allow most of their bodies to connect and their lips to touch. 

"Please, I need you, need you inside me, right fucking now." 

She had the decency to look a little ashamed at her words, but that all disappeared when his weight was over her, barely keeping himself from crushing her in a way that she'd find utterly delicious if she wasn't already reaching down to stroke him again. 

The pause in his movement spoke volumes; Rey could tell that his brain was working quickly as his mind battled his body. "Nothing exists beyond us," she said with a breathiness she didn't know she was capable of, "in this room i'm yours and you are mine. Don't think." The last word was punctuated by her other hand grabbing his ass and she forcefully pulled him into her, connecting the head of his dick with her wet center. 

" _Fuck_ , Rey, baby."

"Please do!"

A spell of laughter overtook them and cleared the tense environment from the room. Finally, _finally_ , he started to move his hips in that spectacular way that aligned him with her molten entrance, but he only teased her, pressing in barely enough to breach her before pulling back again. "Pleaseeee," she groaned, flapping her arms in an annoyed range of motion. This was all she wanted so why wouldn't he just do it?!

With a kiss that seared her skin, Ben relented and slowly plowed into her until a harsh cry left her lips. 

"Rey?" 

"No, go, please. It's just..." a few breaths escaped her, "so big." 

It wasn't meant to be a stroke of his ego, just a statement of fact, but that didn't stop the grin that split his face. She nodded her head, urging him on, and he took pity on her, snapping his hips to meet hers until their pelvises kissed. 

"Oh fuck." She was split, stuffed so full of Alpha cock that she'd bleed his scent before long and he moaned as she tried to adjust, but continued to clench around him instead. 

"I'm sorry, I can't..." The muscles on his back pulsed with each movement of his hips, the powerful motion forced the bed frame to crunch under their combined weight and her moans started to escalate as he set a blinding rhythm. "Alpha, _yes_ , fuck me." He growled, literally fucking growled from deep within his chest in response, and let himself go. There was nothing held back, no stopping him when it came to pleasing his Omega, to continue those squeaks and moans and pleas that were just for him. 

"I'm so close, baby. Right _there_ , thankyouthankyou."

With his face pressed against the side of her neck, Rey could sense any restraint evaporating. He jackhammered into her, creating new curse words that would've made her giggle if he wasn't hitting that perfect spot that had her soaring higher than she ever thought possible. "Come for me, Rey." And his hand found her clit, had her whimpering, crying, screaming as her body followed his order and careened into oblivion, dragging him with her as he colored her with his milky spend. 

For the first time in her life, Rey felt properly fucked and on top of that, she felt treasured. His large frame should've been too much for her, but she loved the feeling of him surrounding her entire being. "How long can I keep you?" Her heart jumped at his words and she marveled at her own strength as she flipped them both over, claiming Ben's lips before she made a fool of herself.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The heat comes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the wait! Writers block on top of some angst about my own writing abounded over some real life issues so this is way later than I wanted to initially update. I also spent time thinking about what I like in updates so hopefully you're all pleased with the amount of action. 
> 
> Typed on an iPhone and not beta read so my apologies for any issues.

Ben departed the next morning. Rey didn't want him to go, didn't want to be separated from a man who truly appreciated her and ignited a flame within her, but she had to get herself together for the trip back home herself. There were no promises made or expectations discussed before closed the door and stepped outside. She didn't want to need him for anything, she didn't want to need anyone. 

It was clear that things with Hux weren't as they seemed. Being away from him, removed from home, put many things into perspective. She still ached from Ben's ministrations, physically and emotionally, something she never felt in relation to her husband. 

She tried her best to clean his scent from herself, no doubt that an ordinary Beta could tell that his interacted with hers. That day she purchased a suppressant body wash, noting that it smelled like the one she used at home, and paid particular attention to washing over her scent glands and the apex of her legs. Everything washed down the drain and only memories were left behind. 

________________________________

The drive back to Varykino was boring in a way that numbed her entire being. Hours spent watching the white lane lines buzz past and she felt and knew that this would be a trial, perhaps the hardest thing she'd ever done in her short life. She would return to Hux-no, Armie, she reminded herself, and go on with life as she knew it. 

Maybe it would be easy to forget about her time with Ben and revert back to the way things used to be. People had one night stands all the time. Did a one day stand make this any different? Now she could check it off her bucket list. 

He had his own life, the personal details of which were a mystery to her. She hadn't asked and he hadn't offered. Where he lived, what he enjoyed, she knew none of it. But she tasted the Alpha and he still lingered on her tastebuds. 

Now it was time to forget. Time to be an adult and do things the right way. No more dalliances with husky Alphas when her hormones were out of control. No more Omega Rey with her ferocious appetite and need for control. No. She effortlessly fell back into being Rey Hux. 

_________________________________

She blessed the stars that Armie didn't notice any differences when she came back. More than anything, he was happy to have her within his reach and she only let her inner self blanch at that, remaining completely passive at face value. Perhaps it was his Beta biology that allowed any lasting whispers of Ben's scent to go undetected. But she couldn't bring herself to be intimate with him. She feigned headaches, sicknesses, anything to avoid having him inside her. He started to become more cruel as she made more excuses, but some small part of him wouldn't allow anything beyond a groan and an angry glare escape him. 

Construction on the house continued though Ben's absence was like a punch to her gut. 

**Rey**  
_Where are you?_

**Rey**  
_Ben, talk to me._

**Rey**  
_Please._

Numerous text messages went unanswered but she wouldn't stoop so low as to ask his men where he was. It hurt, of course it did, but the feeling wasn't foreign to her. She just wished to know what was in his mind. To know if his mind replayed that day like hers did. Speaking to an empty void wouldn't help. 

Days turned into weeks, weeks to a month then two and by the time his scent was replaced by that of others in the house, Rey almost stopped missing him. _Almost._ Life went on, progress was made, and she loved putting all her blood, sweat, and tears into each room as it became its own masterpiece. 

The last week day before the long weekend she woke up feeling wrong. Wrong in so many ways that were impossible to adequately explain. Her skin was flushed, her head ached, and the blood in her body had been traded out for rivers of lava. Everything hurt and nothing made sense and she all she wanted was to cry, so she did. The bed shook with the gravity of her sobs, waking Hux from his normally peaceful sleep. 

"Rey? Babe?" He leaned over to touch her, but quickly pulled his hand away as if he touched the angry coil of the stove. "You're burning up..." 

It didn't take long for all the cogs and gears to connect and fall into place for him, a lot quicker than understanding came to her. "You didn't eat the oatmeal I packed, did you?"  
__________________________________ 

It wasn't even after 9 in the morning and Ben should've been on his way to a bid, but he had too many administrative things to accomplish since Paige's exit. People always wanted to get paid for some unknown reason. 

The crew scheduled to work on the Hux project strolled in not fifteen minutes later to the annoyance of their boss. "What the fuck are you doing here?" The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop his lips from moving. So much for professionalism. 

Theo, the carpenter, shrugged as he took a seat. "I don't know either," he said with his coffee cup inches from his mouth, "we were starting up for the day when the homeowner kicked us out. No reason, no nothing, but his face started to match his hair by the time he shut the door in our face." The bald man chuckled slightly, recalling the slapdash way they were informed that they weren't needed today. 

All things considered, he put in a lot of effort into separating himself from them, from her. He tried not to think about her if he could help it and it seemed that today the world intended to fall on his shoulders. He was willing to let it all roll off until the rest of the guys walked in, a specific scent drifted off the mass of them. 

A jolt shivered up his spine as he recollected what it was. He couldn't forget it, wouldn't want to, either. It haunted him in that way that once in a lifetime moments do. There was a part of him that was fine with the memory of her always working against his subconscious as a way of forcing him to knuckle down, to let her go and stop being _that guy_. 

But the twist in her scent screamed that something had changed. 

Minutes later, he was out the door, pulling his truck away from the curb and flying down the street as fast as the fairly new engine could muster. Whatever this was, it hurt. It pained him in a way he never experienced before and hung like a shadow in the back of his mind. Every molecule within him asked why. Why did you let her go? Why didn't you fight? Why are you ignoring what you want, what you _need_? 

An answer escaped him, but his mind was clear and his path was laid out in front of him with grid lines and directional arrows to guide him. 

Her husband wouldn't be able to help her. He may try, but all it would bring is more pain and suffering to her mind and body. As an Alpha, he was uniquely made for this, to fix this problem, but there was little doubt that Hux would let him anywhere near her. 

He parked in front of the house and rushed up the walk, his dark waves flying behind him in the tunnel of wind his large body created. There was no noise coming from the house, no lights on, and the only sign of occupancy was the car parked in the driveway. 

His fist flew against the hardwood door, rattling the inlaid glass, until it was yanked open from the other side. "WHAT?!" 

Hux had a truly off-putting face and it was difficult to hold back the overwhelming urge he had to punch the smaller man. Ben's overall size seemed to draw the redhead back and away from the door, seemingly realizing just then that he was no match for the rugged, plaid clad contractor. 

"Where is she? Where's Rey?" 

"That's none of your damn business," his face pinched as he sneered in a way that made it look like there was a too sour lemon trapped in his mouth. 

"I don't know what you did to her," Ben said as he stepped over the threshold, "but if you hurt her-" 

"You'll what? The days of you Alphas getting away with everything are over. Touch her and I'll have you locked up. Did you forget who she belongs to?" 

Ben fumed, but he wasn't wrong. Recent bills were submitted to the state capitol to try and rewrite the old laws that benefited the now rare Alpha and Omega partnerships, surely he was associated with the people who introduced it if he was so determined that it come to fruition. 

The two men continued in their verbal barrage of words, their voices were loud enough to echo back at them in a deafening tone, and it didn't let up until a quiet voice - no, a cry - struggled down from the stairwell in the entry way and Ben bolted up the large set of stairs. His heart thrummed in his chest and something indescribable blocked his throat, threatening to strangle him from the inside. 

"Rey!" She laid in the bathtub in the en-suite bathroom connected to the master bedroom, sunk into layers of ice. 

"Ben, hurts..." Her voice was weak in comparison to her usual timbre. 

"I know, I know, I'm sorry." He heard Hux's footfalls approach from behind him and was on his feet in an instant, back in his face in an accusatory manner. "Look at her! What the fuck were you thinking?" 

"She's fine," he said with a wave of his arm, as if to indicate this situation wasn't as bad as he made it seem. 

Anger controlled him in that moment, coiling like a vice inside his chest, and his hands tightened into fists at his sides. "You say she belongs to you and you let her stay like this?!" The adrenaline was getting to be too much, it coursed through his veins and kicked up his fight or flight response. 

And then he grinned. The bastard had the audacity to _fucking_ grin. "I-" Ben's right fist connected with his face in a horrifying sound of bones crunched together, flesh meeting flesh, and that grotesque noise that came through Hux's voice-box. Something in him snapped then. It was the Alpha's resolve to massacre this man, this coward, right then and there, if it hadn't been for Rey's whimpers. " _Please._ " 

The steel covered toe of his boot connected with the smaller man's chest as he fell and there was a good chance he'd have a few broken ribs, but fuck if he cared. Everything in his body, his mind, his entire soul, faded away until there was only her, this beam of line at the end of a very long tunnel. 

"I've got you, I'll take care of you. Don't worry little Omega." He grabbed an oversized robe and held it up as he lifted her from the tub, covering her the moment her skin hit the air. The smell immediately overpowered him. How he managed to last this long without giving in to her heady scent was a mystery. He groaned and almost lost his footing, his knees momentarily weak, but managed to hurriedly carry her out to his truck where he softly placed her in the passenger seat. "Hold this closed, okay, Rey?" 

She was too incapacitated to make a formal reply and only nodded feebly when he strapped the seatbelt over her, to keep her and everything else in place. His mind wasn't working correctly stuck in such a confined space. Luckily, his place was a short drive down the road. He maneuvered the truck swiftly from one lane to another, passing cars that impeded progress, until they pulled into his garage through the open garage door. 

Rey began to shake as the garage door slid down and back into place, enrobing them in a state of semi-darkness, and she struggled against Ben when he tried to take her from the car. Her smell was heavenly, coconut and gardenia with a fruity aftertaste twinged with one note that was uniquely her, but it only excited him instead of calming his nerves. 

This was a new experience - a rut started by the pheromones of an Omega in heat - and he felt like a teenager who just got his knot as he warred with his own inner demons, trying to keep a clear head. 

"Rey," he ground out through clenched teeth as he laid her down on an oversized ottoman in the living room, "I can help you but you need to tell me to." 

"Please Alpha, please... Need your cock, your knot, so bad." She'd devolved into pure animalistic need as she grabbed on to his pants in an attempt to pull it all off. 

The first thing he noticed when the robe fell away was the slick between her legs. The ice bath had done nothing to cool her down and he knew the time spent in pain must have been excruciating for her when she didn't know how to find relief. 

"Mmmm, fuck, you look so good. I'm gonna be so good to you." 

All clothing shed, he hovered over her as he moved her body up, allowing himself space to kneel on the tufted piece of furniture. Her heat induced slick readily welcomed him into her body, their previous liaison granted her less pain with the stretch of her muscles, but tears welled up in her eyes anyway. " _Yessss, Alpha, more_ " 

That tore apart any ounce of restraint Ben had left. His rut took over, thrusting into her in a fevered pace that had them both crying out for each other. 

"You take this cock so good, baby." 

The sounds of their bodies meeting filled the room, her moans rising up louder and louder as she got the friction she craved, and his wrist covered her gland, effectively scenting her and was rewarded with a clench of her walls around him. " _Fuck_ , so good, Rey." 

All that came from her mouth was unintelligible babbles and groans, praise for him as she worked up to her orgasm, the precipice so close she could taste it. His hand found her clit between their bodies, smothering the small bundle of nerves with touches that would have hurt had she not been in a heat induced delirium, and his name spilled from her lips like a prayer as she came. 

His knot started to swell as he neared his own end and his movements became more stilted and erratic, his forehead slumped down to her shoulder. The scent that escaped from her glands soothed him as he finished loudly, his knot locking him in place while his cum coats her insides, the instant relief evident in her expression. 

"Thank you," she whispered, running her fingers through his hair as his hot breath mingled with the sweat sheen on her skin. 

"Anything for my Omega," he croaked out in response. 


	6. Chapter 6

"Please!" Rey sobbed as Ben teased her, rubbing the head of his hard cock along her entrance with no rush to move any further. "God damn it, Ben! Fuck me."

It was day four of her heat and the pain in her body had slowly started to ebb like a receding tide, but her need for him was still helplessly apparent. That was not at all a product of her cycle. 

"Maybe I like to hear you beg for it," he rumbled, nudging her scent gland with his nose, "do it." 

A whine escaped her lips, but any trace of shame or embarrassment evaporated in an instant. "I need your cock, Alpha. Need _you_ to fill me, fuck me, make me yours..." All she heard in response was a low growl as he sheathed himself inside of her in one quick thrust, uniting their bodies in a way she needed more than air or water or life itself. 

There was no gentleness in his pace, her body demanded that it be hard, fast, and thus it felt so fantastic for the both of them. No longer stuck in his Rut stage, Ben was able to keep a clear mind while he continued to roughly thrust into her, his cock hitting all those spots that her small hands never could. Her husband never did either, but all thoughts of _that_ man were gone. Only Ben, Alpha, was in her head now. His scent wiped away anything and everything else; he made her a clean slate. 

"You're such a good little Omega, always so wet and ready for me." All she could do was nod in response, his overwhelming Alphaness leaving her just on the other side of brain dead, unable to form words or even move to save her life. She could feel her orgasm coming, running at her so quickly she was succumbing before she was fully aware and her body is momentarily stuck - paralyzed - by all the amazing feeling he brought to her. " _Fuck_ ," Ben huffed out as her walls clenched down and spammed around him, ready to milk him dry as his knot started to swell and rise. 

"Please, Alpha, please I need your cum. Need you to fill me full of it." Her voice returned, low and raspier than it's ever been before, and with one last low groan he finished, reciting her name like his last rites. 

___________________________________

Her wedding ring sat in the pocket of the robe she had slung over her body while he transported her like a knight in King Arthur's court. Though they didn't discuss it, she knew what the heat meant and how many lies she must have endured through years with Armitage. There was no gentle nickname anymore; she wasn't going back, to him or the house. 

"Can I stay with you?" She said it while he was kissing over her hipbone, marveling at the bruise his rough hands had left behind days before. "I want to be with you..." Ben looked like someone had slapped him across the face, utterly rigid and tense, until her fingers ran through his hair and he leaned into her touch. 

"Please" was his only response. 

______________________________________

A full week had gone by since her heat ended and he was reluctant to leave the house without her, but she had to remind him more than once how they failed to bring any of her clothing during their hasty getaway. 

"But you look so good in my clothes." Her entire wardrobe consisted of his boxer shorts, rolled over a few times to not be quite as large, and some shirts that "conveniently" shrunk in the wash. While they both wanted to stay in this happy little cocoon, life was easily running aware from them at light speed. 

Thank god for Amazon and other web retailers, she thought to herself days before as she added two new bras to her cart full of multipacks of cotton underwear. She sat cross-legged on a wooden chair at his dining room table, the closet thing he had to an office, and freely used his laptop for whatever she wanted. _No porn though_ , he'd said as he wrote down the password to his Windows account. B3Ns0l0 wasn't something she'd forget after she'd seen it, being that it was _such_ a difficult password to crack. 

It was all so hopelessly domestic in a way she never experienced before, truly wanting to be with someone instead of needing them when there is no one else. 

Ben scoffed behind her, laughing slightly at the practicality of her choices as he turned the laptop toward himself where he hovered behind her, and ran through the cart of his account. "Why don't you tell me what you want and I'll go out to the mall to pick up whatever it is?" With a stroke of genius, he brought up the various store websites and showed her about the ship to store feature with most allowing pick up within a few hours. Rey had always been weird about money; it makes sense when you had so little of it. He had no care about the price tag for any of it and waved away any objections she tried to voice. 

A few hours later he was back, arms laden so full of bags that there's more of them than there is of him and she can't help laughing while she watched him struggle through the door. "Delivery for Rey. Remember to tip your driver." It's said with a smirk that made her heart squeeze just a bit and her mating gland felt great which she didn't know was even possible, but that's because she still wasn't familiar enough with what being an Omega meant aside from wanting this Alpha more than she can vocalize. Which is why she scheduled an appointment at the local Omega clinic when he was out. 

That night they made dinner together, Rey finally dressed in clothes that fit her much smaller body -including a matching flannel shirt that Ben picked out - and they kept finding reasons to touch each other. His hand on the small of her back and hers on his large bicep as she leaned up to lick a stray spot of tomato sauce off his jaw. It was comfortable in a way that she never thought possible, never imagined for herself, but it made her feel complete and new, freshly unwrapped from the layers that life built around her soft skin for protection. 

Her Alpha instructed her to sit down on the bed, void of everything except the lacy underwear they bought today, as he looked over her and slowly removed each article of clothing from his overlarge frame. Rey's small hands pushed his own away from his belt and started the slow process of pulling it through each loop, followed by the swift movements that pulled the button free and the zipper down, her hand diving inside to pull his thick cock out. Rey's hand was so small, the size comparison so obvious as he watched her hand stroke him softly. 

"Don't tease," he whined as her pace sped up a bit and she scooted closer to the edge of the bed, drawing him closer to her open and waiting mouth. "I have no intention of doing that, baby. Alpha." He moaned in response and he tongue lick the bead of precum that threatened to fall away. 

It was a tough fit, getting him inside her small mouth, but she was determined and his guidance and praise helped her work through her early fumbles. "Rey, fuck, just like that." Her own hand moved down her body, pushing the fabric that covered her pussy aside, and pressed two fingers inside her heated center. Their moans mingled for a few moments, but it wasn't enough for either of them, the light touches only stoked the fire. 

"Hands and knees," his tone demanded her movement and she rushed to the center of the bed, scrambling to the proper position with a longing look over her shoulder. It excited her, the strong timber of his voice and the authority that came with it, everything about Ben had her wet and ready for him. His fingers slipped through her wet lips, barely connecting enough to be considered a touch, but still enough to make her crazy. 

"Need you, need you now. Gonna die if I can't have you." She rocked, trying desperately to bring her body back to connect with his, but he managed to stay out of her reach. Finally, after what seemed like an absolutely eternity, he gripped her hip and pulled her back on his cock until her ass met his pelvis. The velvet tightness of her cunt was too good, it made his head spin and his body yearned for more of her. They found their rhythm easily; Rey was never anything other than a willing participant, she continued to rock back into him as he pressed into her, dragging himself out in a long stroke before pushing back in with a snap of his hips. It was intense and made her dizzy, the motion felt like getting caught in an earthquake and tsunami generated by his searing touches. 

"You are the best thing in my life." The words left his lips in a whisper barely loud enough to hear over the sounds of their bodies slapping together. The sentiment was in such conflict with their hungry touches that it shook Rey to her core. She cried out as his fingers found her clit, fumbling to keep the small bud under his spell as he twisted and milked her orgasm from her body, "I don't know how to behave without you." 

Her scent, the euphoric mixture of herself twined with part of him, threw him headlong into his own release as she quivered around him. Ben pulled out before his knot could lock him in, stroking himself to completion as he spilled his spend all over her ass. With a grunt, he fell next to her, reclined on his side, and pulled her down to spoon, unconcerned with their mess. His tongue traced her mating gland while she shivered in response.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens. Literally. 
> 
> I realized today that Paterson is how I picture Ben when he's not in full Alpha mode, so enjoy that visual.

Rey woke early the next morning, stretching against Ben as he slept soundly behind her, his arms tightening just enough to make his desire for her to stay evident. The call of caffeine was too much to ignore and it took a lot of effort to pry his arms away from her body. 

The length of her heat meant that there was almost no food left in the house. They drank the last of the coffee yesterday and there wasn't even tea in the house to get them through the morning. 

_Went to grab coffee, back in 10.  
xxxRey_

She placed the note on her pillow, leaning over his sleeping form to kiss his cheek before setting off on the short walk to the Starbucks a few blocks away. It wasn't her kind of scene - the major corporation and all that - but she was still very unfamiliar with the area as a whole. They'd taken walks during the spare moments her heat was under control, but it was barely a few blocks before they had to turn back and tear off all their clothes again. 

It was twelve minutes round trip thanks to the chatty barista and the frat boy who couldn't take the hint. 

Ben was awake when she walked in, sitting on the couch with his laptop nestled on the arm and shirt mercilessly forgotten, and her body simply hummed at the sight of him. "Morning," she said, her hand drifting through the tangle of curls always present at the nape of his neck as she set his coffee on the side table next to him. She contemplated pushing the laptop away to crawl into his lap, but the knock at the front door derailed that train of thought. He answered the door while she took over his spot, enjoying the warmth his big frame left behind. All sounds seemed to fade into the background as she zoned out, the caffeine finally taking hold and pushing her the last few steps to true awareness. 

"Detectives Erso and Phasma, can we ask you some questions, Mrs. Hux?" The two women stood in front of the large coffee table, identification displayed as if she knew how to spot a fake from a mile away. 

"Uhh.." she glanced at Ben who stood next to the door, rubbing his fingers together in the anxious way to broadcast to her, and her only, how he felt about this situation. "Sure, but call me Rey, please."

"Okay, Rey, then. We have some questions about the events that transpired a few weeks ago at your home, 413 Gem Way, particularly events related to an altercation between Mr. Solo here and your husband, Mr. Hux." 

Ben and Rey exchanged a few more glances before the platinum haired detective stepped into their sight line. "We can separate the two of you, if necessary, but we were under the impression that keeping you together would be more beneficial."

She nodded and let out a breath she didn't know she was keeping. "Do you want me to start from spending my life thinking I was something else -that I had no idea I was an Omega - or when my husband, as you like to refer to him, put me in a tub of ice because the heat I was in?"

Both women shared a look before nodding in an attempt to allow the Omega a chance to do it her way. And she explained it all; how she wound up married, lied to, effectively poisoned with suppressants, and left burning up in an ice bath before her rescue. 

"She could have died," Ben said from behind Rey, making her jump in her seat before his hand came down on her shoulder, a touch to reassure her. She had no doubt that he could smell the anxiety that rolled and coiled inside her. His large, warm hand glided over her scent gland before scaling the distance to her trapezius where it stopped over the cloth that covered her mating gland. It called out to him, but she ignored it now. 

A small piece of her, infinitesimal really, had a need to know where he was. He hadn't come after her, though she was a bit surprised by that, and there was no attempt to call her. That wasn't the man she knew. "How is he?" Her voice was more childlike that she even recognized. 

Erso, as she called herself, cleared her throat and looked over at her partner before speaking, "he's in a medically induced coma." Rey couldn't help the sharp intake of breath that accompanied those words.

She didn't care. No, really, she didn't. She was only worried in the way that you did about a squirrel trying to dodge through lanes of traffic. 

His footsteps echoed louder than the pounding of her heart in her ears and his scent spiked as he backed away from the three women. "He was fine when we left," Rey said, her glands _dying_ for his touch. 

"To be frank, you were in no state to observe the situation when you were taken from the house. Why do you think we waited until now to come here? Even two Beta women wouldn't have gotten by unscathed while interrupting a Alpha and his Omega during a heat." 

"Rey's right," Ben echoed from the few steps behind the couch where he remained, "he was awake and screaming vicious things when I got her out." This information was written down, the two women nodded to each other and stood, shaking Rey's hand and dropping a business car to the table. "We will be in touch if there's anything else."

The silence wrapped around them for an undetermined amount of time before she found her voice. The small and cracked version, but her voice all the same. 

"We need to talk."

For the first time in her life, Rey knew what she wanted. Not out of necessity or survival, but because every atom inside her screamed his name and she was sure that when she died, they'd find vestiges of his name in all her organs. 

"I want to be with you," she said when he finally sat next to her. The proximity to her Alpha was like a cannonball into a cool pool in the August heat. 

He sat silently for a moment, the couch sagging slightly under his overlarge frame, and seemed to think carefully before opening his mouth. "I want to be with you. It's beyond Alpha and Omega for me. I know you feel it too. You turn me into a different man, one I actually like." She crawled onto his lap then, unable to stand the centimeters of distance between them, and rubbed her wrist over his neck gland, scenting him. "Please have me," and her mouth closed over his, battling away the need for any additional words on the subject. 

She knew, logically at least, that there was more to discuss than those few statements, but there was time for that later.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really trying to keep to a weekly updating schedule, so I apologize for the delay.

Early the next morning, in the shower, his hands rubbed body wash all over her, but stopped shy of her mating gland. "Does that bother you?" Her question was whispered and really, she had no idea why he was so tentative around that particular part of her body when he was always touching her scent glands every chance he could. The response he gave was nothing beyond a hum as he moved her under the spray of the shower head. Luckily, everything was Ben-sized here and being that she was much, much smaller, but not too much shorter, there was more than enough room for the both of them to drift from one side to another. 

"It feels good," she said to the shower wall more than to him, "when you're close to it, when you touch it."

"Later," was his only reply and the basic response is so unlike the man she still barely knew that there was no doubt it would be on her mind until later finally came. 

"Those are some busy thoughts you have." His warm hands traveled down her wet skin, cupping her breasts before continuing the run down to her cunt where he pressed one finger to her entrance, pulling in a great lung full of air as he encountered how wet she was. 

" _Ben_." Her whine was insistent and needy and had the blood pooling in his cock as he molded the back of her body to his chest. 

"Hmm, what's that, baby?" 

Rey tried, she really did, she tried her damnedest to push back against him, give him the same teasing she just received, but his fingers found her clit and ground a nipple between thumb and forefinger, turning her into nothing more than a moaning pile of want in human form. 

"Please, please, please." With a pleased hum, he maneuvered her toward the opening of the shower to allow her space to lean over as he pressed his cock against her ass and edged her legs farther apart. 

There was no need for a discussion, she was dripping wet and babbling nonsense in an attempt to explain how much she needed him immediately, right then, hard and fast. He slid inside her with no pretense and grunted his satisfaction as her velvety pussy clung to his cock, pulling him in so deep the head of his cock slammed into her cervix with each stroke in. 

" _Baby..._ " Her breath came in loud exhales as she balanced on her outstretched arms and pushed back into him as he pulled out. "Harder, Ben. Give it to me, Alpha."

He did just that, the sound of wet skin slipping and slapping against more filled the shower cubicle and if possible, the enclosed space got even steamier. "I love this pussy, your pretty little cunt, all mine." His voice created shockwaves that traveled up and down her spine, pushing her closer and closer toward her orgasm. 

"Need you, so close.... So close, baby." Rey could feel the beginnings of his knot as he slammed into her, her senses craved it, but she knew there was no recovery time to allow them their normal locked in cuddles. Ben's arm snaked around her waist, his fingers rubbing her clit with deliberate circles, creating responsive jerks in her body as she came screaming his name. 

"Oh fuck, you feel so damn good." She clenched around him, squeezing his rigid member while he continued to shallowly thrust into her. 

"Come on, Ben. Fill me up, baby. I need your cum." 

Three, four more thrusts and he pulled out enough until barely the head of his cock was inside her, coming with a rabid growl and his hands grasping her hips so tightly there were sure to be ten small bruises later. 

"Mine," he said as he smacked her ass.  
______________________________________

It had gotten to the point that Ben could no longer ignore work if he still wanted a business to come back to. The fact that they hadn't been apart since her heat set in wasn't lost on either of them. Rey was used to being codependent, her life truly depended on her husband before, but the difference between the two relationships was more than night and day. 

"I'll be home at 5 and we'll go out for dinner, okay? Wear that purple dress we bought." His eyebrows shot up suggestively, making her giggle and toss one of the throw pillows at him which he dodged without effort. 

" _Yes, Alpha._ " Her statement was met with a loud groan, bringing Ben to her side quickly. 

"Talk like that and I won't be able to leave."

Somehow, they managed to separate from one another and the distance was immediately noticeable. Was it so horrible that she wanted this man always? She had no one else in her life. No friends, no family, but this situation was so different from anything else she experienced. 

Sure, her designation played a part in that, but there was a piece that went beyond everything that normally bonded two people together. A part of her, previously undiscovered, came into being when its match was found in him. 

She allowed her mind to wander for a few hours while she tidied up, cleaned out leftovers from the fridge, and started a load of laundry. Their lives had become hopelessly entangled faster than the speed of light. It all brought her mind back to her life of a few months ago, a few years ago too. Was her life always spun around a man? Deep down, she knew it couldn't be true. Two different scenarios did not make her life into one complicated puzzle with a dick as its solution. 

No. 

No. 

There was only one way to find out, to prove that Ben was special, that the both of them were special. 

The day was still young and there was a lot of time before he would be back home. Their home. It was never referred to as anything else now and the thought made her smile, had her heart beating erratically as she left the house. She grabbed the spare key from the last brick on the raised flowerbed, remembering to bring that fact up with Ben at dinner. A key of her own to all their doors. 

The only hospital in town was a two mile walk from the house. The house she'd lived in with her husband, where all her old things still were if he hadn't gotten rid of or destroyed them, was five miles in the opposite direction. All that distance made her feel safer than anything else did aside from the large muscles of Ben's body. He could protect her, forever. 

Her mind was fogged and fuzzy with so many thoughts, each step was closer to answers, but brought a small sliver of pain. Not yet felt, but promised for the future. 

By the time she walked in through the massive double doors, a sheen of sweat had taken over her body and she had to rest in the waiting room chairs to catch her breath. Tomorrow was the day she started working out again, she told herself. Tomorrow she would go for a run, do crunches until she developed an eight pack, and lifted enough weights that her arms rivaled a body builder's. There was time for all of that tomorrow so she needed to get through today. 

The fact that she knew Armitage Hux was somewhere inside this building made her gut bubble anxiously. Still married, she was legally his next of kin and could have more access to him than anyone else, but no part of her wanted to be close to him. She still felt the years of betrayal and lies he built their life on. There was no forgiving that and no going back. 

She traveled the halls until she found the intensive care unit. Most rooms were shaded by drawn curtains around the bed which made it impossible to view the inhabitants if they weren't currently being looked after by the medical staff. A shock of red hair caught her eye as a nurse moved around the corner room (of course he had the hospital room with the best view) and she stalled immediately as if she fell against an invisible brick wall. 

The main that laid on the hospital bed, covered in wires and tubes, was completely unrecognizable. There was no evident lifespark in his body. His color was ashen and only the hue of his hair spoke to the fire he usually embodied. Bruises covered his face, the angry blues and purples that hadn't yet gave way to the yellows and greens of healing. 

It made no sense. The interaction between Ben and Armitage was weeks ago; he shouldn't look this bad by now. Something didn't add up properly. Her memory of that day was slightly clouded; the intensity of her heat made everything foggy and twisted like the reflection in a fun house mirror, but it wasn't hard to hear the sound of steel-toed boots connecting with skin and bone. She couldn't move any closer, transfixed by the small segment of his body that she could see, but the door opened seconds later and she was forced to duck behind the opposite corner to avoid being seen. 

"Yes, sir. I know, I know. The police have been by at least three times, but they're unwilling to press charges until he wakes." A pause and an annoyed sigh filled the empty hallway. "He is a sight, so it shouldn't be any trouble." The person on the other side of the phone line must've expressed their displeasure as the dark haired man, who may or may not be Armitage's friend and coworker Dopheld Mitaka, scowled and quietly groaned. "I will see what can be done, of course." He took off down the other side of the hall and Rey felt the need to wretch, to be rid of all the emotions that collided inside her body. It was too much, too overwhelming, too terrifying to think of what could happen. 

With that knowledge and some sense of clarity, she ran as far as she could. Her mind raced her body, but it all came together on the doorstep of the house she came to recognize as her home. Her safety. Her kingdom. Her refuge from all the storms even the one that surely threatened to tear everything down.


	9. Chapter 9

It had been a long day for Ben. Every small task took forever to accomplish because the minutes dragged on and on with the anticipation of five o'clock, of retreating back home and locking the rest of the world out. So when he is actually able to do that, his foot pushed the accelerator and his mind to the edge, he walked in the door in record time. 

But the air is charged with tension and energy the moment the door closed behind him. 

"Rey?" She sat on the kitchen floor, surrounded by pots and pans that she intended to organize before her thoughts overtook her and left her body in a semi-comatose state, her mind reeling. "Hey," he said as he touched her shoulder softly, the small amount of contact is enough to force her back into the world of the living. 

"Sorry. I got lost in my own head... and look at this mess."

"Everything alright?" Her scent announced that something troubled her, but it was clear without the lie detector in her pheromones, he would've been able to tell by her body language. She continued to sit there, nibbling on the fraction of a fingernail on her thumb, and patted the floor next to her. She needed closeness for this conversation, the feel of his skin to make sense of everything that ran through her mind, leaving streaks of color in its wake. 

"I went out today."

"You went out?" Ben's posture immediately straightened as if an electric surge ran through his body. His overly large frame leaned into hers. "Rey, where did you go? You're not on anything, any suppressants, so it's very dangerous." Of course, the one day he isn't home to protect her from the world is the day she decided to venture out. There was still so much she didn't know, couldn't understand, about her place in the world that the thought of her all alone outside made his blood run cold. 

"I went to the hospital," her hand rose to stop him from speaking, "I went to the hospital to see him. I know I had no reason, but I needed to know what happened and oh god, Ben, it was horrific. That wasn't what you did. You didn't cause that. I know you could never hurt someone like that, even him." 

If she can't sense the hurt in him, the pain from knowing she was close to the man who did so much to hurt her, it was an absolute miracle. "Something's wrong..." she whispered as she wrapped her hand around his bicep, needing to touch him more than she needed to breathe in that moment. "I'm scared, Ben."

That night they ate a dinner of sliced cheese, lunch meat, and crackers on the floor of the kitchen. It was their safe haven, the rest of the world couldn't get to them if they stayed within the square footage of that specific room. His joints cracked when he stood up from lack of use which made bending down to gather up her small body a little difficult, but he drew the line at sleeping on the floor. His bones were too old to handle any of that. 

They slept naked, curled around each other, and barely able to sleep due to the nervous energy that fluttered in both of their stomaches. She whispered sweet nothings to him as his eyes drifted closed, telling him how great of a man he is, the best Alpha, all wonderful and hers. The morning came earlier than she wanted; her night spent watching his eyelashes fluttered against his cheek as he dreamed about things that sometimes twisted his face into a mask of agony and sorrow. 

She decided to make french toast for breakfast that morning, being that it was one of the few simple recipes she knew how to make without referencing some website, and had a small pile of french toast ready for him as well as a full pot of coffee when he trudged out of the bedroom, clad in his jeans and a stark white undershirt. "I didn't even hear the shower," she said as she ran her fingers through his still wet hair, "I wanted to join you." 

"And that would've made me at least two hours late for work."

"But worth it, right?" She wagged her eyebrows at him suggestively as she placed the food and a steaming mug of black coffee in front of him. 

A harsh knock at the front door pulled her out of her reverie. "Eat!" She grabbed the edges of the oversized t-shirt that stood as her only item of clothing and hid behind the heavy door while opening it. On the doorstep stood the two female detectives who visited just days before. 

"Hello, detectives, what can I do for you?" She leaned around the side of the door so at least some of her body would be visible. 

"Ah, yes, Mrs. Hux." They knew that would put her off any hospitality immediately and they made sure to speak loudly enough so that Ben could hear them from the dining room. 

"Detectives?" The two women looked relieved as Ben came into view, sucking a trail of maple syrup off his fingers before he came to stand next to Rey. 

"Yes, Mr. Solo," Phasma said as she stepped across the threshold into the house. "Do you have any weapons on you today, sir?" 

Rey's eyebrows furrowed as if she misunderstood or misheard the question. "Weapons?" But he simply shook his head as if he knew exactly where this was already headed. Both Phasma and Erso nodded, more to each other than either of the people who were standing in front of them, and the latter pulled a pair of handcuffs from her pocket. "Benjamin Solo, you are under arrest for assault and attempted murder. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?"

"I do." There was no fight in him as far as this was concerned, but Rey appeared ready to put up one on his behalf. 

"You can't be serious?! None of this is his fault. Ben wouldn't hurt someone like that. You have the wrong information, it's all wrong!"

She stood in front of them, blocking their way out of the door, her mind struggled to catch up to this twist. 

"Rey, it's okay. Call my lawyer. The number is in the phone book. And be careful, alright?"

"What? No! There's no need for a lawyer because this is a mistake. An enormous mistake. Please, please, it has to be a mistake." Tears streamed down her cheeks before she even recognized the sensation as crying. It was too much to handle all at once and as she watched him loaded into the backseat of the police car that pulled up behind his own car, she couldn't keep herself up anymore. 

All good things come to an end or at least they do when those good things happen to her. She shouldn't be surprised at this point. Wasn't it always like this? 

Recalling his instructions after what was most likely hours, she stood on shaky, weak legs and walked around the house searching for the phone book. Each room was searched until she finally found a document labeled "Phone Book" on his laptop. Halfway down the page, beneath the word 'lawyer', was a name. Leia Organa. Well, no time like the present. 

"Organa, Dameron, and Associates. How may I direct your call?"

"Um, hello. Hi." She tried to remember how to breathe and talk at the same time. "I'm calling for Leia Organa, Ben Solo's lawyer."

"Please hold."

The elevator music they utilized did little to calm her nerves. Was this meant to reduce the anxiety of the people who needed legal help? It didn't a terrible job of it. 

One moment the line was again engaged and the happy voice of a woman met her ears. "Benny! What does it take for you to actually call your mother?"

Mother? "Do I have the wrong number? Ben said to call his lawyer and yours was the only one I could find and-"

"What's happened?" Though she had little true experience of her own with a mother or female parental guidance, it wasn't hard to pick apart the fear in the woman's voice. She couldn't explain anything as a lump lodged in her throat and she finally allowed herself to sob freely. 

"He's been arrested and it's all my fault. Ben’s in jail."


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the long wait. I'm trying my best to include as much as I can in each chapter to avoid too many unnecessary chapters.

It took four days for Rey to hear anything about the circumstances around Ben's arrest. 

Four days locked inside the house that still smelled like him. 

Four days spent going out of her mind; thinking up all the possible scenarios that could've happened after he was dragged into that car. 

Four days spent wondering if she would see him again. 

Four sleepless, restless days that only helped to tear her apart. 

She was useless, mourning something that barely had a chance to start. 

When a knock came at the front door, she was sure she'd kindly welcome anyone inside at that point. Whether it be an angel or the devil, there would be no fight from her. Serial killer? Just don't make too big of a mess, she'd say as her blood spread on the floor. 

"Rey?" The olive skinned, dark haired man had no emotion on his face and nothing changed after her nod of confirmation. "May we come in?"

The 'we' portion of that sentence stunned her. Somehow she failed to notice the older woman who looked on from over the man's shoulder, her body smaller and older, but in no means as fragile as she expected her to look. Without words, Rey knew it was his mother. Seeing her calmed the younger woman in a way that was unexplainable. 

"I'm Poe Dameron and this is Leia Organa. I will be defending Ben at trial."

Trial. Suddenly, everything was too real and Rey found it impossible to take one breath without falling to the floor and staying there for the foreseeable future. "But," it seemed that she could finally force her lungs to inflate and deflate with oxygen enough to get words out, "I thought you were Ben's lawyer."

Poe and Leia exchanged a glance while more questions continued to form in her head. 

"It is an insurmountable conflict of interest for me to defend my son at trial. The last thing we need is to give the prosecution a reason to appeal when we win. Besides, as his mother, I need to be there to support him and you."

Rey couldn't help the incredulous that took over her face. "Support me?"

Leia smiled and placed one hand on the younger woman's arm. "Ben is the only family I have left. He asked that I do my best to take care of you in his absence. In fact, I made an appointment for you at the clinic, but we need to discuss the case first, I'm sorry."

Tears stung her eyes but stayed unshed while she tried to collect herself enough to have this conversation. 

With a nod she relaxed back into the armchair and started from the very beginning. She shared every excruciating detail and the two lawyers did their best to let her talk freely, noting what they could from her stream of consciousness ramblings. It wasn't until they got to specific questions that she realized how distorted her perspective on everything was. 

She was naive, a complete fool, to believe all the lies he fed her. It was so obvious now and that made the angry Omega, the tossed aside child inside her, scream with a fury that threatened to tear down the house piece by piece until her hands were coated in blood and sweat. But only the color in her cheeks showed any outward manifestation of her emotions. 

Poe questioned so many things in regard to her husband (how fast could she officially divorce him, she wondered) that she left that part of the conversation more confused than anything else. 

"Did he ever block your access to anything?"

"Were there any strange everyday items that he bought that you couldn't find for yourself?"

"Was he in control of the food in the house?"

"Do you think he kept track of your comings and goings?"

"Is there a chance she was monitoring your personal devices?"

Rey explained Hux's comment about the oatmeal (how she remembered that in her heat induced delirium she'll never know) and the suppressant wash she bought after her night with Ben that came in a different bottle but was definitely the same body wash her husband always bought her as an 'expensive gift.'

The problem was that Rey hadn't been in the house for quite awhile and none of them would be able to get in without express permission. Everything was in his name, of course. Leia made a comment about getting their investigator involved and Rey found that a great time to tune everything out for a mental break. 

The day and the questions were never-ending, but that meant that she would likely be in for a long ride before finding the resolution to all this. 

She was ready for it to be over, ready to be her own woman and make her own decisions. 

"How long does it take to prepare the legal documents for a divorce?"

Poe and Leia exchanged a look that she couldn't fully catch and both breathed a little deeper than usual. 

"I think we will have a strong case for an annulment," Poe said as he stashed the legal pad in his messenger bag, "but I think it's a good idea to wait, to see if we can prove any of these things in court and then use them to your advantage." 

The long and arduous day finally came to an end with handshakes and hugs and promises that they will get through this, you'll see. Ben's mom-Leia-said she'd return tomorrow so they can go over some personal things. Her mind raced trying to figure out what she could be talking about, but the organ was too spent from the gymnastics of the day to really provide much support. 

As she laid in bed, wrapped in the blankets and snuggled up against his pillow, the phone rang loudly enough to bring her out of the almost asleep zombie state that would allow her to go to sleep without dinner and without answers. 

"Hello?"

The automated message explained that there was a call from the local jail and she quickly pressed 1 to accept the charges. 

"Rey."

Even the sound of his voice from miles away calmed her more than anything she'd experienced in life thus far. 

"Ben, oh god, I miss you."

He chuckled in that way she came to recognize as a defense mechanism, a stalling tactic, when he was not sure how to accept a compliment. It's adorable and sparked something deep inside her that purred at having the attention from him, even for a moment. "When can I come see you?"

The silence echoed through the phone line and her own ears as she expected a happy response from him. "You can't."

"Yes, I can. I can catch the 5B that leaves from the church at 2:45 and be there within an hour. I've mapped it out a few times and even if the bus is late-"

"Rey..." His tone called out to the Omega inside her, the part of her that spent the last few days longing for him so much that it practically whines as he addressed her. "You can't come here. Do you know what would happen if you walked in here, a building full of mostly Alphas, while you're not on suppressants or mated? They would tear you apart and I couldn't keep you safe, I know I can't protect you. So please, Rey, please..."

It was an order, declared to an Omega by her Alpha and every neuron in her body sighed in that despicable way it did around him, " _yes, Alpha._ "

"Thank you." And she knew she made him happy without having to actually hear the words. 

She wanted to be mad at him, to tell him that this was all so stupid because wouldn't he be happy to see her? Didn't he miss her like she missed him? How could he be so calm with everything that was happening with them and the case and the trial? Surely he knew about all the things Poe and his mother had asked her about because they must've asked him too. 

"When will I see you again?" She couldn't help it, really. 

And the sigh she heard in response was much more upsetting than any single sound should be, but it's enough that she didn't need to have a spoken answer. The heavy feeling in her gut made her think she'd throw up the contents of her stomach - the water and little bit of coffee from the morning, no real food to speak of - and she thought that if any more words came out of his mouth she really would. It couldn't be helped and so she forced herself off the phone with a ridiculous excuse that she can't remember after the line is dead. 

____________________________________

The next morning Rey felt like she crawled out of a coffin buried ten feet deep in the fresh earth instead of the bed she loved. 

Maybe she dreamt all the horrible events that transpired since the police showed up at their door and brought hell to their world. A harsh knock on the door rattled not only the sizable oak fixture, but also her concentration, and she chose to ignore it and continued to lay wrapped in her own depression. 

Maybe she drifted back to sleep or maybe she zoned out enough that nothing existed in a temporal anomaly for a few minutes because when she came back to herself Leia was standing next to the bed with an amused grin on her face. "Time to go."

"I don't think I'm up for going out, sorry."

The older woman took a seat on the edge of the bed and managed to keep her stature perfectly straight as she sunk into the soft foam of the mattress. "I understand that is all very distressing for you, I do. But we have appointments and hopefully they will leave you in a better state." 

And with that, she walked out of the room to allow Rey some privacy to get dressed.

Appointments meant a stop at the local clinic where she was examined by a doctor who grew up Leia. "Dr. Holdo," the woman stated as a means of introduction that was followed by a brisk handshake. "We have much to discuss."

The doctor went over the specifics of what her life would be like now that she knew her designation: the role of suppressants with an unopened box and a prescription, how often she'll go through heats, and gave her a few pamphlets about mating. Mating, really. That topic threw her completely, but she tucked the material into her bag to read when she was alone. Some part of her was much calmer than she could ever remember. "Is that all?"

Before anything was said in response, the exam room door opened and a man around her age entered as if he was summoned. "Ah, yes. This is Finn. He's an Omega, as well, and I thought it would be helpful if you had someone who understands what you're dealing with." As if she'd found the cure to cancer, the doctor smiled and took a quick exit out. 

All Rey could do was stare at the stranger and wait for the minutes to tick by. "I know this is hard," he said as he pulled a business card from his pocket and began writing on the back. 

"A few years ago I was in much the same position as you." She truly doubted that statement, but didn't actually voice her disagreement. "My cellphone number is on the back. Feel free to reach out with whatever you need even if it's just someone to chat with over text messages at 3 am." She nodded finally, seeing this as the last obstacle between her and the door. 

After the doctor's office, Leia drug her to visit the last place she expected-the house on Gem Way. 

Poe and a handful of police officers, including the two detectives she was sure she blamed for all the things that happened to Ben, met them before breaking the seal on the front door. 

The first thing she noticed after stepping over the threshold was how heavy and obvious the scent of blood was as it still lingered in the stale air. 

"Can you show me where the 'altercation' took place?" Her air quotes were met with disdain from the police, but still they showed her the blood stains in the living room rug and smears on the hardwood in the hallway. 

"This isn't right." Quickly, she hurried up the stairs and stopped abruptly in the master bedroom. "This is where Ben and Hux had their argument. I was in the bathtub through there." She kneeled down on the floor and could make out just a few specks of blood which she happily pointed out to those around her. 

All Ben did here was defend and protect her. If they wanted to lock him up for that, she would do everything she could to incriminate Armitage Hux and all those lowlife Betas who thought they ran things.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to post this chapter long ago, but I experienced some personal issues as well as work being hell for a few weeks. This was difficult to write and while I'm not super pleased, I think everything came through how I wanted. 
> 
> I'm still a little behind on responding to comments so thank you to everyone who has left one or some kudos.
> 
> Also, I'm in no way a lawyer so take most of this with a boulder of salt.

Rey lived in a time-space paradox where time moved for everyone but her. The only glimpses she got of Ben in the lead up to the trial were during pre-trial motion hearings where he was covered in a blazing orange Department of Corrections jumpsuit. There was never a chance for talking, only stolen glances and half-hearted smiles. Leia was always at her side with a hand to hold and a shoulder to cry on. 

She needed that shoulder every time she stepped foot in the court room and took her seat behind the defense table. The wood felt warm like she'd only stepped away to the restroom instead of the house where she felt more like a ghost than a living, breathing occupant. But it was clear to her that he was being strong as part of some Alpha bravado gene. 

She felt like a useless bystander in all of it. 

Constant discussions whispered between Leia and Poe flew completely over her head and Ben never looked at her after he took his seat. 

She found some solace in the budding friendship with Finn. 

In the beginning, she didn't appreciate the fact that he is also an Omega and felt like she was being pushed into something she didn't want or need. Yet again, people were making life decisions for her. But with time came a bond that required little tending before it grew and bloomed. 

Each night she spoke with him, whether five or fifty minutes, and it mended one small part of her heart. He became her confidant in a way Leia never could.  
______________________

One day Rey dreamt of becoming a lawyer. In a future version of her life where she can afford the wildly expensive schooling and living expenses and she could study all day. It was most likely a dream that came after too many episodes of Law and Order in the laundromat while waiting for the rain to stop. She could yell an objection, demand things be stricken from the record, and badger an invisible witness almost like a real lawyer. 

None of that prepared her for the start of the trial, though. 

The thing about an Alpha trial is that the room is charged from the start, especially if the Alpha in question isn't mated. 

Society easily misinterprets Alpha pheromones as an admission of guilt in that setting. 

Poe and Leia were instrumental in getting a new technology introduced to allow an impartial setting for the jurors. The steel collar locked on the back of the neck with two chemical soaked cloths that effectively scented both Alphas and Omegas enough to make everyone into Betas. The Alpha collars were gold while the Omega collars were silver. All the Betas in the room, far more in number than the other two designations, had bare necks. 

Something about the new assistant district attorney put Leia immediately on edge and Ben frowned too. The person acting as the prosecution was different through every step of the trial. This time it was a petite Asian woman who looked like she couldn't be more than five feet tall, but she still seemed powerful with that small stature. 

Even before the opening statement, Poe requested to approach the bench. Words such as "conflict of interest" and "a disingenuous ploy" drifted back to them just loudly enough for them to hear. 

"The ADA is the sister of Ben's ex."

"Recent?" She realized then that she knew almost nothing about his personal life before she collided into it herself. 

The question went unanswered as the discussion at the bench ended and a solemn looking Poe returned to the table with a shake of his head. 

"Your honor," she said in a feisty way that made everyone hunch over to wait for the next part of her statement. "The state would like to amend the witness list to include Armitage Hux." Though Rey couldn't see her face from her seat, she was so utterly and completely sure that there was a smile laced wide on it. 

Hux was still in a coma when evidence and witness lists were turned over prior to jury selection. Ben's head turned to look at her before she absorbed that earth shattering statement. 

He made Poe agree to keep Rey from testifying if Hux couldn't. There was no consulting with her about the idea; Ben made up his mind and everyone had to follow along even if they didn't agree. 

A gurgle of noise erupted between many of the people in the gallery before the judge called for a recess. 

"I want to do it," Rey remarked as she stood in the hall with Poe and Leia. Ben couldn't join them for any discussion because he wasn't allowed bail and the sheriff's office kept him in a room by himself during any down time. 

The look Poe and Leia shared wasn't lost on her and if anything, her eyebrow rose in response. "Really! This is for Ben and it's going to help, I know it."

It fell to Poe, then, to be the bearer of bad news. 

"In that case, you can't come back in. If you're going to testify then you have to be sequestered." He reached behind her to pull away the collar that automatically unlocked once they crossed the threshold from the courtroom. His own gold collar was somehow mostly hidden by his suit. 

" _Oh._ " 

________________________

The daily monotony was what annoyed Ben the most about jail. He could handle the small cell, the horrible food, the less than welcoming community even, but hours upon hours of the day spent with nothing to do besides letting his mind wander was, in effect, slowly killing him. 

At some point, the institutional library was state of the art. But now, the men who came through those locked and barred doors had no respect for the literary works they defaced and destroyed. The only book that was mostly spotless and still in one piece was the Bible. He wasn't that desperate. 

He took to writing as the days wore on. Sometimes it was letters, others it was prose or essays, anything to unclutter his mind. His childhood therapist would be proud if he could see him now. Well, in some ways. His anger was still a problem and may never truly go away. But working with his hands calmed him mind, body, and soul. And being with Rey. 

More often than not, his mind wandered back to her. He'd imagine what his day would be like if he was back in bed with her. Would she try to make another one of his mother's recipes and incinerate the food in the bottom of another pan? 

After decades spent dominating court rooms and currying political favor, Leia finally became the mother he needed and it only took another arrest. What he needed now more than anything was to know that Rey was taken care of. It was obvious to anyone who knew her that she wasn't some feeble little thing, but the recent events added to an already tough life. 

Top that with the recent discovery of her Omega status and he happily would've cut off all his limbs if it meant protecting her. Everyone could see that she's his world. 

Each visit with his mother brought the slight scent of his Omega, just the barest hint which was enough to calm his frayed edges. The astringent change in her scent spoke of the introduction of suppressants. It was bitter, like an unpleasant aftertaste, but it reduced his fear enough to allow his mind to sleep. 

Seeing her sitting in the bench behind him in court warmed his soul just enough that he thought he could get through this temporary difficulty and resume the life he always wanted. The prospect of facing Rose in court, and by extension Paige, was enough of a slap in the face to jar him from the steady foothold he had. 

The news of Hux's recovery changed everything. If the collar didn't mask his scent, the entire room would've known and recognized how that idea disturbed him. It disturbed him more that Rey would be required to counter any testimony he provided. This wasn't going the way he wanted, not at all. 

He wondered why he wasn't more surprised about this recent turn of events. It was clear in the way Rose Tico looked at him that she wanted nothing more than to smother the life out of him as if he were a bug under her shoe. Hurt one Tico and you feel the force of them all. 

That night he finally wrote down all the things he needed to say to Rey on the chance that he won't be coming home. 

A sad thought, but all the odds seemed stacked very high against him and he couldn't imagine living another day without getting each and every word out onto paper. The letter was pages thick and quickly shoved into his pillowcase to keep away from prying eyes. 

Air was stale inside the courtroom the next morning. The suit his mother picked out stretched a little more than usual over his broad shoulders. Time locked away was good for the fitness, he thought with a dark chuckle as he tightened his deep blue tie. The proceedings bored him more than anything and he knew Poe would do his best to curtail any issues so he zoned out completely. 

It was only after lunch when Hux was called to the stand that he came back to himself. The ginger haired man had his complete attention. By the smug look that glanced across his face for only a mere moment, he knew it too. 

After swearing to tell the truth, ADA Tico approached the witness stand like a cat on the prowl. 

"Mr. Hux, do you know the defendant?"

"Yes, I do." 

The woman stopped walking in front of the jury and turned towards the defense. "Can you explain to the court how you came to know the defendant?"

Hux wove a long story about meeting Rey and ultimately deciding to rebuild a house for her which was when Ben came into the picture. He jotted down notes on a legal pad like 'suppressants in food' and 'padlocked cabinets' to bring to Poe's attention. It was clear that Tico was laying a foundation for what was to come later, but there were multiple problems with his testimony that Poe could pick apart. 

"Were you aware of Mr. Solo's Alpha designation when you hired his company?"

"No," he said rather primly. "But it didn't matter. My wife and I are Betas so I didn't worry about it."

Poe caught Ben's eye then and shared a knowing smile with the man next to him. 

A few more questions were asked and answered before Tico finished and sat down at the prosecution table. It was clear to every onlooker that the static in the room was heavily charged. Poe didn't need to ask permission to treat Hux as a hostile witness. 

"Mr. Hux, were you intimidated by Mr. Solo when you first met?"

The other man sneered slightly before answering the question. "No, I was not."

"And so you left your wife alone with Mr. Solo for an extended period of time over multiple visits to your home. Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"When did that change?"

Hux eyed Poe for a moment before leaning closer to the microphone, "I'm sorry I don't understand the question."

"I'll rephrase." Poe looked over the faces of the members of the jury, half who seemed to be very determinedly watching his every move. "Did you or did you not make a request, through the foreman of Mr. Solo's company, that he not be present at your home during construction?"

"Objection!" Tico was on her feet in a flash. "Not only is he badgering the witness but this implies hearsay, your honor."

The judge, a large man named Ackbar, squinted his eyes and looked over Poe as if assessing his threat. "Overruled. Continue, Mr. Dameron."

"Thank you, your honor. Please answer the question, Mr. Hux, or would you like that I repeat it?" Poe smiled and all his practically perfect teeth were on display. 

"I didn't think he was needed at all times."

"And this had nothing to do with the fact that Mr. Solo was able to tell Mrs. Hux was actually an Omega?"

"She's not," he said more under his breath than into the microphone, but Poe still caught it. 

"As I'm sure you're well aware, Mrs. Hux was in the gallery for some of these proceedings and wore the silver collar as required for all Omegas. Her biology has been all but verified at this point. Are you trying to dispute that fact, _sir_?" A large amount of venom was held in that last word as it left his lips. 

"No, I just--I didn't know." Tico glowered at them both from her seat, unhappy with how ridiculous her witness looked. 

"Your honor, I'd like to reserve the right to recall this witness after our evidence is introduced."

"Understood, Mr. Dameron." 

The prosecution brought forward multiple witness who spoke to Ben's almost criminal record and try as he might, Poe couldn't get the evidence thrown out. His juvenile record was sealed and expunged, but some anonymous source handed it over which got them around any rule against it. There was little doubt who that source could be. 

__________________________________

When it finally came time to present their case, the first witness was a forensic anthropologist named Dr. Maz Kanata. After her weighted credentials were waved in front of the jury, photos of Hux's injuries and x-rays of his bones were again shown. 

"Dr. Kanata, please tell me what you gathered from the images you see here."

The elderly woman sat up taller in her seat, as if excited for the information she had to share and arranged her large glasses. "While I prefer to touch the bones, I understand that the individual who received these injuries is still alive so that would mean little to me. What I can tell you is that there are layers of injuries, especially those around the face and chest. You can see the damage to the ribs which look to be made with a heavily weighted object."

"What kind of object would you expect these injuries were made by, Doctor?"

She paused for a moment and the anticipation climbed higher. "Something like a pipe, though the shape is wrong, or a pair of steel toed boots."

"What about the other injuries? Those to the face, were they made by the same instrument?"

"No and they were made later, maybe a day or two after the injuries inflicted on the ribs--"

"Objection! This is all supposition, your honor." Tico was on her feet again, finally happy to get herself in the middle of the testimony that damaged her case. 

"Dr. Kanata," the judge looked down his bifocals at her in the witness stand, "are you able to provide support to your contention?"

"Yes, your honor." And the forensic anthropologist went on to explain how remolding was clear in the earlier fractures while the new ones were made with either a wooden bat or a fist and different altogether. She brought this home by comparing the original x-rays to those taken before Hux left the hospital where the remolding was abundantly clear. 

The next day brought Rey's testimony. It was painful for Ben to imagine her out there all alone again and he knew she must also be frightened for what this could mean for him. He had no fear, though, not when it came to her. 

A dark skinned Omega he didn't recognize came to sit with Leia, but he didn't miss the smile Rey sent to him and those people over his shoulder before the questioning began. 

"Can you tell us, Mrs. Hux, how you know the defendant?" She cringed dramatically at the last name she was still tethered to, but plowed through as best as she could. 

"Ben was the contractor on the house I lived in and now, well, we're together."

"But you're not mated? Why is that?" This line of questions made Ben uncomfortable and the rise of color in her cheeks made it clear Rey felt the same. 

"It's only recently that I discovered my designation and I- I think it has made a lot of sense to take our time."

Some questions were asked about her childhood, her marriage, and Poe went as far as asking her about their days together in Coruscant. She'd sputtered at that and stole a glance at Ben, but answered truthfully at every turn. 

"We spent a few days together in a hotel room in Coruscant, yes." 

It became clear that Poe was trying to bring up any potential attack points offensively before the prosecution could try to blindside them. He introduced the various items found to contain a high level of chemical suppressants: a lot of her food, body wash, even a 'vitamin' she took daily to hopefully increase fertility, and she certified that she took them all. All of it was tested and all of it was verified by scientists to essentially be poisoning. This statement set the jury members off, separate conversations and sounds of surprise made the judge beat his gavel down against the bench to bring order. 

The questions were getting to be an ordeal to answer and she knew Tico was bound to be a fury in small form. With strength she kept deep in her reserves, she faced the other woman head on as she walked closer for cross examination. 

Leia and Poe spent days preparing her for this moment and she wasn't ready to let any of them down. 

"So, Mrs. Hux," she took joy in drawing out that name, "you have only known the defendant for a few months?"

"That is correct."

"Please take a look at these documents that were admitted into evidence. Can you please read the highlighted portion aloud?"

Rey looked up from the page, sitting up straighter, and caught a look from Ben before soldiering on. "Benjamin Solo was arrested on November 9 for assault and battery after being identified by Mr. Greedo. as a member of the First Order gang. Solo's alias, Kylo Ren, was tagged on the victim's residence. Solo was found to have numerous weapons as well as multiple baggies of cocaine on his person at the time of his arrest." 

"Is any of that familiar to you, Mrs. Hux?"

"I know First Order as the company my husband works for... Whether it is the same as this--as this gang, I can't say." A chill ran up her spine. 

"And do you know who runs the First Order?"

"A man named Snoke."

Ben leaned over toward his attorney as he expressed unhappiness with this information getting out, but also shared a few important points. He could tell from the lighter timbre of Rey's voice that she was upset and overwhelmed. 

"Isn't it possible then, _Mrs. Hux_ , that the defendant assaulted your husband like he did so many others in his younger days? Is it at all possible that this way his way back into the good graces of his old gang leader, Mr. Snoke?"

"No, never, no way! I witnessed Ben hurting him only enough to save me, to keep me from boiling to death in my own body. My husband, as you keep referring to him, was happy for that to happen. Isn't it just as likely that Mr. Snoke found a way to punish Ben for leaving that life behind?"


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please be warned that there is violence in this chapter and the tags have been updated to reflect that.
> 
> As always, thank you for the kudos and comments and reading in the first place!

More days of testimony followed including that from Amilyn Holdo, Rey's own doctor, who explained that the young Omega surely would've perished if she spent another six months on the toxic dose of suppressants. 

"What do you say of the claim by Mr. Hux that he had no idea as to his wife's designation?" Poe asked, his words particularly vicious that day. 

Dr. Holdo connected with several of the people sitting in the jury box. "In my opinion, the only alternative would be a naturally occurring vein of suppressants in their water."

"Have any natural suppressants been found?"

"No. Suppressants were and continue to be made by the majority who are uncomfortable with the natural biology of Omegas and enjoy their control of it."

After Dr. Holdo finished, the defense made a point of calling a witness no one expected. "The defense calls to the stand Darren Theodore Snoke. Also known by the alias Darth Snoke." No one entered the courtroom though a silent buzz was just electric enough to feel and taste.

A young blonde woman, Kaydel Connix, was the last to give testimony on Ben's behalf. In a sing-song voice, she explained that she is currently employed at Organa, Dameron and Associates as their investigator. 

"While running background on Mr. Hux, I came to find out that Darth Snoke uses his company to launder money from his drug empire. We were not able to serve the man a subpoena personally."

Details of the man's past criminal activities were discussed in extreme specificity for close to an hour. Connix found many examples of Snoke's old subordinates who ended up in prison or dead when they left for a better life. Ben heard the tales when he was still involved in that lifestyle, but a not-so-wise man always thought his circumstances were different and the road would fork before he met that end. 

That night, Ben laid awake through the dark hours of the night. If this was to be his last night of hope, he wanted to look back and remember the good things that he'd miss. The light that beamed from Rey's smile, the smell of fresh cut grass when they laid under the spanning tree in the backyard, the noises she made while he was between her thighs. All things he may never see or experience again. 

With the next day came the whims of people and years of his life possibly gone. 

Hours later, he was brought back to the room where he'd change into his suit and wait for the door to the courtroom to be unlocked from the other side. The gold collar sat on the table. His glands ached from the chemical treatment already. He never took the blockers that some Alphas did. It was never necessary as the likelihood that an Omega would cross his path was so unlikely. And yet. All things considered, he thanked his own stubborn soul for that refusal. Would he have found her if he was also chemically neutered?

All that remained of the trial were the closing arguments which allowed Rey to be present again. She sat in the first bench in a navy dress his mother surely purchased, it was as political a style of dress he'd ever seen. The president's wife probably had one in another color. 

"Hi," she whispered as he sat down and leaned forward with her arm balanced on the low wall that divided the gallery from the tables. Her hand connected with his back and he seemed to melt back into the contact. It didn't last long before one of the deputies caught it and all of her limbs were back where they belonged. It was enough for him, though; a reminder that he was human in need of the touch of a woman. 

Rose Tico's closing argument was long and drawn out, circling the statistics about violent felons reoffending, and claimed Snoke was nothing but a scapegoat for an Alpha who couldn't control himself or his actions around an Omega in heat like so many Alphas before. 

When it came time for Poe to rise and address the jury, he did so as if enormous weight sat on his shoulders.

"The state does not believe in second chances, that much is clear. To them, Alphas are rotten animals one minute away from starting a blood thirsty massacre on the citizenry. They want you to believe in monsters and ghosts, but the evidence is clear that there are no ghosts here. Darth Snoke is a real man, a corporeal being, who uses his subordinates until no spirit remains. Ben Solo is only a man. He's made mistakes in his past, but he's spent the last decade doing all he can to make up for them including saving the woman he loves from a man who would easily poison her to death before letting her be free-" Rey's intake of breath was loud enough for most of the room to hear. Some eyes trailed over her before returning to the man still speaking, "-of his shackles."

The remaining components of his speech explained that the jury must acquit his client due to the failure of the prosecution to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. 

With instructions from the judge, the jury filed out of the courtroom and turned into the area beyond where they would discuss the verdict. 

Poe didn't get up to leave and so Ben was allowed to stay in the room as well. They both turned in their seats, addressing the women behind them, though it felt more like continents, oceans, or even galaxies separated them. 

"How long do you think it will take, for them to come to a decision?" Her question was directed to the olive skinned attorney, but Rey's eyes neither blinked nor moved from Ben. 

"I think the majority was with us," came his response before he took the chance to drain down a glass of water. "It could take an hour or weeks, you can never know. But... we can sit here for awhile."

Many of the other occupants mulled about, no longer enjoying the drama that played out before their eyes, and walked out to the hall where they could use their phones again. Her stomach rumbled after hours of emptiness, but she was too nervous before court to eat and knew it was likely that she wouldn't keep anything down if she tried. 

"I can't wait for you to come home." 

_________________________________

Days passed by at a snail's pace, whoever had control of the sands of time decided they should all move so slowly. Leia wouldn't allow Rey to sit at home and spend her days doing insignificant things like replacing cabinet pulls and scrubbing the grout in the shower like she wanted. Instead, her faux daughter in law was taken for manicures and pedicures, salon blowouts, and brazilian waxes. The latter was so embarrassing that she couldn't speak to the older woman for at least an hour. 

"You'll both thank me," she patted her hand with a smile while they waited for the return of the town car. 

Though her face matched the color of the horizon around the setting sun, Rey pretended everything was fine. She didn't have a mother to know if this kind of thing was normal. Maybe all mothers cared about their daughter's personal grooming enough to force them into getting waxed in uncomfortable places. 

She needed to be a few days removed from this entire situation to have a clear head about it. Leia thinking anything about Rey and Ben's sex life had her shuddering and looking for a drink the moment she stepped inside the house. All she came up with was a fifth of vodka that appeared older than the Earth, covered in dust and cobwebs. She hadn't known him to be a big drinker, but clearly there was still much to learn about the man. 

Before dinner, Rey stepped outside to water the few weeds that looked like they might flower into something intriguing, waved at the neighbors who glanced out their windows, and grabbed the large pile of mail from beside the door. The majority of it went into the pile addressed for Ben that Leia picked up every so often, mostly bills, but also some terrible things that she kept from her son. 

The next morning found Rey dressed in a maxi skirt and tank top while she waited for Leila's car to pull in. She waited half an hour then forty five minutes, glancing at the time on the clock above the stove for what felt like hours. By the time she appeared, the younger woman had given up waiting patiently and stood by the fireplace, cleaning off a small but fine layer of dust from pictures and remembrances layered there. 

"Come," Leia urged as she took a seat on the couch, a grim set to her face bringing the level of anxiety up in Rey's throat. "I've just got off the phone with Poe and there's been an issue. It seems that one juror was being coerced into voting a certain way-" Rey's breath stopped and froze in her lungs for one terrifying moment, "-but an alternate was able to step in. If it goes any farther the prosecution will have to file charges for jury tampering."

There's no question about who did it, no one needed to bother with a guess at that stage. 

For a moment, one small, solitary moment, she wondered what would she have become without him, her divining rod in a parched desert. 

She found a thick stuffed envelope placed on her lap, the black script on the front was beautiful written by a hand she knew well.

_Rey,_

_I didn't want to write this and I hoped you'd never read it, but some things can't be helped. Like much in my life lately, I'm powerless in it all. One thing I need to make abundantly clear: I don't regret a thing as far as my life with you is concerned. The only wish I have is for more time, with you, for us._

_I can't know what the verdict will be. It was only a matter of time before my past caught up with me, but I never wanted it to impact anyone else, especially you. Truth be told, I never expected to even have someone as good as you in my life._

_Thank you for sticking with me. Thank you for putting your entire life on the line for a man like me. I don't know if I'm a good man or if I actually deserve you, but I intend to spend every second of the rest of my life demonstrating how precious you are. Not just to me either. My mother adores you and she's not a fan of many people. Believe me, I speak from experience._

_There's something I want you to have. Inside the closet in our room is a pair of brown dress shoes. You will find a ring in the left shoe. If I spend the next fifteen years of my life inside a cell, I want you to keep it and think of me, but don't wait for me._

_On the off chance that I get a miracle and get out, marry me. I can wait fifty years as long as you say yes. Think about it. Please._

_Ben  
_

_________________________________

The following morning Rey stayed in bed longer than she normally did, watching the light dance off the ring on her left hand, and enjoyed the pang of butterfly movement in her stomach. She wasn't ready to fully connect all the dots between this sparkler and any coming events; a few things needed to fall into place first. The house phone rang just as she swung her legs to the floor to begin her day with a shower. 

"Hello?" she said with her leg shaking from the same nerves she always got whenever the phone rang. 

"It's time, sweetie." 

Ten minutes later and once again, she stood outside waiting for Leia. Her hair was up in a wispy bun and she wore the clothes she never got to wear out the day before. All her nerves were frayed, leaving most of her limbs shaking with anxiety and small particles of fear floating through her blood vessels, and unshed tears lined her lower lashes. She could do this. She was a survivor, proven many times before, so something like this she would get through. If Ben was strong then she could be too. 

Somehow, her body went through the motions enough to get her inside the courthouse and room itself. Leia's eyes dropped to her hand multiple times, but she never spared a word about what was in front of her. 

Time may have existed in a vacuum by the way it moved. One moment she sat on the wooden bench, waiting for the room to fill, and the next people were talking, but there was no sound, only motion around her. It was a motion blur, streaks of life created by all the action around her, and she sat and watched it happen, enraptured, until Poe clapped Ben on the shoulder and Leia was rising up beside her, pulling her into her arms as Ben turned too, a large and bright smile on his face. 

It happened. He's free. He's coming home. 

________________________________

In the backseat of the town car, secluded away from the two people in the front seats, Rey and Ben celebrated being able to touch each other again. They were no longer ghosts, but now living from one moment to the next as long as they were connected. 

"You're wearing it." They are the first words she heard since coming back to herself. His voice created a flush over her skin, a reminder that this man held such power over her, even with a mere few words. 

"I always choose you."

The car sat at the curb when no one made a move to exit the vehicle. 

"I think you may enjoy your reunion more inside." A hint of a smirk played at the edge of Leia's lips. They both knew she was happy to have her son back out in the world, but the likelihood of seeing something inappropriate was high. "I was young once too..."

"The rest of that sentence is better left unsaid." And Ben laughed, a true, jubilant laugh that took Rey's breath away completely. 

"Thanks, mom. We'll see you later." He leaned down to accept a kiss to the cheek from his mother as she climbed out of the passenger seat to move to the back. 

"Thanks for ever-"

"SOLO!" Everyone turned to see Hux stalking over from a car parked down the street, a gun waving in the air with his arm. "Did you think it would be that easy? That you could take everything from me like it was nothing?"

Ben pressed Rey behind him, his large formed body enough to conceal her completely if she stood still, but she had no intention of letting anything else come between them. 

"Armitage... don't do this." 

"You were mine! And we were good, we were happy, until this monster ruined it all."

"We weren't happy, Armitage." She laced her fingers together with Ben's and used all her strength to force his arm around her waist. "You made sure I wasn't awake enough to know how bad it was."

With a scream of rage, he raised the gun and pulled the trigger as many times as he could before the driver and Leia had him forced to the ground. Blood blossomed and spread from the two bullet wounds on Rey's stomach and neck, but Rey was crawling over Ben's body and pressing her hands down where holes now marred a perfect body. 

"No, no... please, no." As the dark started to flood her vision, Rey spoke up to the heavens and prayed that he wouldn't be taken away again. They had long and full lives to lead past this day. It couldn't end here. He was still warm and barely breathing when she finally blacked out at the sound of the ambulance approaching.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel horrible that this update has taken me so long, but I had a specific way I wanted this to go and it took me time to make it happen. 
> 
> It should go without saying that I have no idea how medicine or the law works, so take everything with a grain of salt. 
> 
> I appreciate you all sticking with me.

Everything was too bright, too different, too off from the normal to be real. 

When Ben opened his eyes, all the colors appeared different. The whites were bright, the blues were muted, and everything seemed to dance in his line of vision. Except that Rey laid wrapped up in his arms, tangled among the sheet and duvet, breathing long and deep while she continued to slumber. 

He knew this was a dream. Reality had taken a hard turn on him, so it was either a dream or... heaven. 

But heaven meant that he'd died. No part of him was ready to go down that path just yet. Especially with Rey pressed up against him and his body, whether real or not, enjoyed the feel of her. 

"Hey..." Days of stubbled growth ran over her shoulder and up her neck as he valiantly tried to rouse her. "Baby, wake up." His hands skimmed down her abdomen as his lips left open mouthed kisses along the skin he could reach, his entire body moulding around her until little of her was visible between him and the blankets. 

Dream Rey was more wicked than his own; her own naked body moved against him without verbally responding. It didn't take much for his morning erection to fill completely with her actions. By the time his hand finished the slow journey to the destination between her legs, he had groaned his frustration into her hair. 

"You're playing with fire."

"Should you refer to your wife as such? I'm okay with pet names, but that's not one I'm familiar with."

The grin in her voice was loud enough for him to hear over his own labored breathing. "Wife?"

She turned enough to lay on her back and drop her hand into his lap, engulfing his length in her small hand, "Maybe the feel of the ring you gave me will make your forgetful mind remember. I know yesterday was a whirlwind, but you can't forget it already."

His heart labored heavily, pumping blood to all his extremities, enough to allow his brain to work through this information while his hips pressed his rock hard cock further into her hands. "I love you..." The statement left his lips as if on a breeze, carried away and through her with minimal effort due to their proximity. 

"Want to feel you love me, Ben." The motion of her wrist was awkward and stuttered, her dry hand tugging him over her, "right now."

A door shut somewhere beyond the room they occupied, his adrenaline coursing through his veins which brought pain he had no explanation for. The distraction was enough to pull his attention away for only an instant. 

Looking down, he found only scars on his naked torso, none of the fresh wounds, with nerve endings raw and jagged, to burn from. 

"Rey?" The bed was suddenly empty save for his now clothed body. His voice shook and he whimpered like he never had before. 

The door closed again, followed by large footsteps that echoed against the walls and throughout the hallway, and he decided there was no reason not to find out what the repetition was. The cycle continued until he faced the door, waiting for some kind of movement, and caught a younger version of a man he'd never forget. 

"Hey, son. You ready to help with the Falcon?" Han's hair wasn't peppered with gray and his stubble was darker than he'd ever remember. His father was young, maybe around Ben's own age which meant that things were still good. 

As a child, he loved nothing more than his father's laugh and the chocolate pancakes he'd whip up when Leia was out of the house. His mother didn't appreciate the bad food or the groans they produced when they collapsed into the couch with bellies full. 

"Dad?"

"I know you can't reach it on your own yet, but I need your eyes over the flashlight. I picked up a new super stool to get you up there. Are you ready?" 

Somehow he seemed to know exactly where everything was even without ever stepping a corporeal foot in this house.

Maybe things were always as his parents had them and simply transported through time and distance to his own place.

Maybe he longed for the life he didn't miss until it was so far gone. 

Maybe the relationship his parents had during the good days was exactly what he wanted with Rey. 

It was simple enough to see the errors they made in hindsight, but the biggest difference was that Rey and Ben were far from carbon copies of Leia and Han. They were specifically their own, new individuals.

"Dad, I need to find Rey. Have you seen her?"

Without a look back over his shoulder, his father exited the white painted door and stepped into the setting sun. "Everything you need is ahead."

"Dad, wait... What are you talking about?"

The area just beyond the kitchen door wasn't what he knew to exist in the backyard and instead brought him back to a time in years past when he'd vacationed with his parents and his uncle Luke. 

Large trees decorated the yard with long braids of ivy and cherry blossoms floated along with the wind. 

"Ben, did you wash your hands? The pond water doesn't count and you know it."

His mom stood in front of a thriving fire, the color illuminating her small shape like an angel's might, causing his breath to catch in his lungs. It was difficult to tell her age from lack of light, but she must've been young, perhaps younger than he'd ever recalled seeing her. But he always aged her more than the years ever could. 

"No more playing, Benny. Go back inside and wash your hands for dinner." 

With a half turn, he gripped the door and stepped back inside, making quick work of washing his hands with sweet smelling soap. His hands were wet and slightly cold, but his body needed food more than it needed warmth or a dry touch. When was the last time he ate? He was always in need of sustenance of one kind which made this exact moment odd. 

He was fine. Not hungry nor thirsty. Everything was in stasis. Nothing out of place, but not quite in order either. 

"What'd you make? Grilled chicken again?" Back out the door, but into a dark storage room that immediately set him on edge. His skin crawled and goosebumps expanded across his body on skin open to the air. 

This place he recognized. 

He'd hidden here once after running from the older boys at school. They taunted him about his short haircut, big ears and nose, and his father's criminal activities.

The life of Ben Solo always had some fodder for the bullies. It was in this room that he met Snoke for the first time. The old man found him cowering in a corner, paint spilled down his back as he rocked on the balls of his feet, his fists curled in anger. 

"Alright there, young man?"

His old man schtick had worked just enough, but he couldn't stand another second in this room. Not even in his current cognitive state. 

The problem he faced was a lack of an exit. He couldn't remember how his younger self got out of this years ago, surely the route he refused to take, so instead he walked around, looking between the wood slats as some light filtered in. If only he could get his large fingers between... 

"No need to worry, my friend. Why don't you come join me for a drink? You look like you could surely use one."

Ben blocked out the old rodent's words, finally kicking at the thin wood with short bursts initially until that produced no results and all his energy went into connecting his foot with the one thing separating him from his way to get away. 

It was then he heard the scream. His reflexes pushed him beyond what his physical body may be able to handle, crawling through a small hole toward the dirt floor, and he moved forward and beyond until it was far behind him. 

"It's about time!" Rey's wondrous smile greeted him as he rose up to his full height and attempted to dust off his spot free clothing. 

"Baby," his desperation was obvious in his tone, how he longed for her. Now that she was here, sat in front of him while picking dandelions, and his eyes scanned the horizon for whatever was sure to come next. "What are you doing?" He asked before lowering himself down next to her. 

"Making my king a flower crown, of course." Her hands worked quickly and though his automatic response was a laugh, he wouldn't deny her this. 

A laugh struggled its way out of his chest until he was almost falling over with the weight of it. "What about your own?" His question was immediately answered as she pulled an elaborate crown from under her long skirt. The grin brought out her dimples and his heart pounded even harder in his chest. 

Was it possible to love this woman any more than he already did?

By now, every blood cell in his body had a piece of her floating through his vessels and arteries until his DNA was a combination of the two of them, impossible to separate. 

A few breaths left his body before he spoke, "I'm ready to wake up now." She gave no indication that she heard him, but continued to work diligently as the wind picked up around them. 

She patted her thigh when the last bloom was weaved in and dropped the crown to his brow after his head reached her lap. "Close your eyes now."

Ben kept his eyes closed through a few deep breaths, reciting where he wanted to be until it all stumbled into one long phrase (inbedwithrey, inbedwithrey). The air shifted just enough, like the oxygen was vacuumed out, and his eyes opened to see a dark room he couldn't recognize without light. 

"Hello?"

The doorframe, illuminated from the other side, was large and something told him not to knock, to simply open it and enter. 

The instant he caught sight of the room he was taken back decades, to a time when he was stuck to his grandfather's hip more than anything else. His favorite miniature village was set up on the table with the large bridge just barely finished. Anakin worked on that while Ben fussed over the train and its travelers. 

"Remember, nothing is so clearly black or white," he'd told small, young Ben. 

His grandfather appeared as if from nowhere. "Come, Ben. We have work to do."

The size of everything somehow matched his memory, not dwarfed by his growth even in this dream state. "Grandfather?" he questioned the man who had long since departed his life and the world. 

Seeing him again was slightly traumatic, but this was a part of his life he actually enjoyed. Before things took an unfortunate turn. 

"What did we discuss last time? Do you recall the last point?"

"Yes, grandfather. About evil."

Anakin nodded and retrieved the wood glue from the toolbox, setting the paints down for Ben to continue his work on the train cars. 

"You'll make many decisions in life," the older man started, "but you have to understand that most people aren't either black or white. We are a combination of color while also existing with the complete lack of color. Spend your life making good decisions or live your life making up for the bad ones." 

This conversation sat locked away in some strong boxed part of his memory, but the recitation of it connected so many things in his life. The karma of it all. He couldn't end his time in the world while his bad deeds outweighed the good. 

He sat down, crossed his legs, closed his eyes and moved his upper body around a circular motion. "Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up..."  
__________________

The hospital room was bleached in light from the fluorescent bulbs that hung down from the ceiling. It illuminated Ben's face while also washing the color out of him. 

Rey sat in the uncomfortable chair next to the bed; her home since she regained consciousness and was allowed to leave her own bed. Leia wouldn't let the doctors put them in separate rooms, it was a kindness she didn't know how to properly repay.

Waking up to see him in such condition made her close her eyes again and she hoped and prayed to whatever deity was currently up there. "Please let him wake up," she had chanted until she heard footsteps approach her bedside. 

The doctor made no reference to her hysterics as he took her vitals and answered any questions she had. 

Yes, Ben was currently out of danger. 

No, they couldn't tell when he might wake up. 

Yes, Hux was under arrest and currently suffering from taser burn. 

That made the maniacal part of her smile. 

The doctors were only willing to discuss Ben's medical information after Leia reminder them all that they were engaged. She hadn't found the time to fully understand to the gravity of the past few days before they ended up here. 

"Please," she pleaded to his comatose body. He was in there, somewhere, and she had no problem with begging. 

"I know you're in there. I need you to wake up, babe. I can't live without you. I've tried, believe me. You can ask your mother about how useless of a human being I was while you were gone. Please, _please_ don't make me do that again."

After no response, she sat back in the chair and brought her knees up to her chest, anchoring her in the spot while she felt as if the air and landscape around her was whirling away. 

Poe and Leia conducted necessary meetings in the hospital room; Rey needed to push through divorce proceedings as quickly as possible and both lawyers assured her that recent events would restrict her husband's options. 

She refused to meet with anyone from the police after they failed to protect them both.

"Normally, the law requires couples to live separately for at least six months, if not a year." Poe looked down at the notes on his large yellow legal pad before he continued, "but I've petitioned the court to take his recent episodes of violence against you into consideration. We should hear back by the end of the week, I think our chances are good."

"Good, good. I want this to be wrapped up as much as possible by the time he wakes up." The file she drew across the broken edges of her nails was the only sound in the room save for the monitor that announced his heart rate. She spoke to the question on everyone's face, "they said it can be any time now, just have to wait."

They all ate cafeteria sandwiches and chips as they enjoyed something of a family bonding moment. 

"I'll be back tomorrow, sweetheart. And i'll bring some fresh clothes for you." 

"Thank you," Rey smiled as the older woman leaned down to drop a kiss to her forehead and then a matching kiss to her son's.

"Take care of him tonight."

Most of the day found Rey sitting on the chair, tv turned to something just entertaining enough, and she talked to him as if he was awake and could engage in conversations with her. 

But at night, that's when Rey allowed her misery to fully settle in. She cried and whined and felt the dark tendrils of despair wrap around her spirit. 

When she was exhausted enough, she climbed up next to him on the bed, melding her form against his, and fell asleep with her arms wrapped around him. It was never an easy sleep, but enough to give her the energy to do the day all over again. 

The hours of solace passed her by, sleeping much easier than she had recently, until she plummeted back to wakefulness. 

She was slow to feel anything beyond the ache in her muscles from the awkward position she dozed off in. The first inkling she got was fingers brushing her forehead, but she was used to doctors and nurses doing what they had to while she laid half asleep. 

"Hey..." Rey was awake the instant even the hint of a noise passed through his vocal chords, "baby?"


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who leave comments and kudos, it's really appreciated. I'm awful about getting back to comments quickly, but I read them all.
> 
> Enjoy some smut!

Rey spent over an hour explaining what happened to land them both in the hospital once he regained consciousness. Parts of his memory seemed to be missing; while he remembered the final days of the trial, nothing after the jury left had stuck with him. 

It made him exceedingly happy to hear that Hux was behind bars, but his temper flared at the mention of the violence he brought to her. 

Without a word, she sat on the bed and leaned over him, blazing her tongue along his scent gland to calm him down. The reaction was immediate - he swallowed heavily and grasped her hand in both of his. 

"Can I?" His head motioned toward her own gland. 

"Yes, but -" His lips were on her before she finished and she could feel how tentative he became after the first taste "- I'm on emergency blockers to keep my heat at bay."

The look on his face told her that she tasted as antiseptic as she anticipated. A meek 'sorry' passed her lips as he pulled her even closer, leaving a kiss on her lips. 

"I'd rather that than have you go into a heat here while I was unable to help. Small favors and all that."

The doctor and three nurses filed in and though she made to move back to her own chair, Ben's grip on her wouldn't allow her to stray. 

"I know you surely want to be on your way and back home, but we'll need to keep you here at least through the night to run some final tests." 

His mind was ready to be free of the needles, the monitors, and the bed, but his body was slow to revert back to its youthful vibrancy. 

They left the hospital with stacks of information in regards to caring for Ben's injuries and expectations for when he'd be fully rehabilitated and able to continue strenuous work. 

Recovery wasn't simple or quick for Ben. And he was anything but a willing patient. He went from a hospital bed to a bed at home and sometimes the couch, but only if he behaved. 

"Ben. Please. I know this isn't what you want, but level with me here."

He shot her a glare over the dinner tray filled with butternut squash and pumpkin bisque (store bought) and a dinner roll. "Why can't I have a burger? A steak? Chicken?"

The look he received in return was just as hard and she bore down on him until he swallowed and looked away. "No. Until you can be mobile and functional again, no red meat. I will revisit chicken in a few days, but you're welcome to sleep on the couch for awhile if you continue to act like an insolent child while I try to help you recover. Don't. Test. Me. Benjamin."

Ben's early life taught him not to cross a strong, angry woman if he valued seeing another day. 

"Has my mother been training you?" An eyebrow arched high while she stirred the soup to release some heat. "Nevermind, nevermind, thank you."

With a smile, Rey shoved off the bed and entered the en-suite bathroom, tossing her clothes off her body into a path tracing her route to the shower. 

"Eat and if you don't annoy me anymore, I'll reward you." Her attempts at singing drifted out to him while his futile attempts at not laughing were dashed. He made a mental note to look up the actual lyrics to _Vogue_ as he was fairly sure that she made up her own as she went. 

All things considered, today was a step up from most in the recent past. 

He was finally home, finally free, finally surrounded by Rey and all their things and their combined life together. 

Yes, maybe she fussed a little too much, but he knew she did it out of love. 

In she walked, hair still wet and wrapped in a low bun with a bleach stained towel clinging to her lithe body. He almost made a comment about the state of it, _almost_ , until he remembered how he'd left her alone for so long, yet again stuck taking care of herself because she had no other choice. 

"Please, nurse, I've finished with my food." The tray was set aside on the empty space next to him, his hands laced together and rested demurely across his lap while he put on his best prim and proper expression, "I believe a reward was mentioned?"

"Did you take your medication?"

His eyebrows furrowed as he glanced toward the collection of pill bottles including antibiotics to stave off infection of his wounds and painkillers. "Yes, earlier." 

The towel dropped to the floor as she put her watch on while glancing at the time, "you have about ten minutes before you need another dose." And his eyes raked so thoroughly over her nude form that he would've developed internal whiplash from the speed of his gaze if it were possible. Soon enough, a black chemise nightdress covered where his eyes had just lingered. 

He didn't miss the fact that the entire house smelled of her, _couldn't_ miss it, and it meant that one particular part of his body hurt more than any wound possibly could. "Rey..." 

His hands rose up to touch her as she came closer, first retrieving the tray to deposit it on top of the dresser across the room before sitting down in its place. 

"We should change your bandages." Down his hands fell, colliding with his thighs and then the bed. He couldn't complain about not receiving the kind of attention he wanted when she was spending so much time and energy helping him recuperate. She pressed his t-shirt up towards his neck, baring a chest and abdomen dotted with gauze squares that hid the wounds beneath. 

"How do these feel?" Her eyes watched his face as each piece was pulled off and set aside, the puckered and stitched skin below an angry red shade. "Babe, I'm not sure this looks good..." 

"I'm alright, I promise. I swear." The small smile on his face barely reached his eyes, but it was enough to calm her for the moment. 

She couldn't feel his pain, so she relied on him to be honest and expressive when necessary. "Have you taken care of your own?" 

His eyes skirted across the slight pink line on the side of her neck. Luckily, the bullet grazed her just inches from her carotid artery. 

She unscrewed the tub of petroleum jelly and spread it over his wounds carefully, "Don't worry about me. I didn't need surgery so I've been healing up fine." 

Her tone was absolute, allowing no argument, but the glint in her eye gave a momentary glimpse to her true feelings, the happiness that fed her every breath. 

As the chime in her watch announced the new hour, Ben automatically reached for his pills and downed each without the help of water just as Rey did the same with a single pill pulled from the nightstand drawer. 

Her emergency blockers. 

They had yet to have a full and drawn out discussion about the matter, but that would surely come with time and the reduction of anxieties. 

Her eyebrow arched as she finished taping down each gauze bandage, "good boy." The praise pleased him; the spike of his pheromones announced that immediately. 

"Tomorrow I'll bathe you, my Alpha, but tonight - a reward." 

She grabbed her nightdress at the hem and pulled it over her head, standing at his side to allow his eyes to take her in fully. 

"Rey," he groaned. What he wanted right now, more than anything, they both knew couldn't happen.

"I know, I have you." 

Ben pushed his tented sweatpants down his thighs, freeing his impressive erection from its cloth confines. 

Like a lioness circling her mate, Rey climbed on the bed on all fours and stalked toward him until she laid between his spread legs. 

"I've missed this," he said, recalling all the nights he spent simply trying to remember their passion and the security of being in her arms, held tight in her embrace. 

Finally, _finally_ , she grasped him, hot and hard against her palm, and her mouth watered with him this close. "You have no idea, Ben." Her tongue swept over the head, tasting his essence there as she let out a moan that grew loudly in her chest. 

" _Fuck_ , baby. Please..." 

He couldn't verbalize what he needed, what he was so ready to beg for, but she didn't need any suggestions to take him fully into her mouth as she hollowed her cheeks and sucked on him hard before dropping her head to take him into her throat. 

All of his control kept his body from moving though some muscles in his abdomen twitched against his will. She didn't need to scent him to know how he felt right then, but still the slight groans made her smirk as she continued to bob her head up and down. For a moment she pulled away, letting him fall from her mouth while his hand came up to cradle her cheek. 

"I don't want this to be over so quick. Want you to feel good like you deserve, baby." 

His breath grew ragged in reaction to her words and she kissed up and down his cock as she wrapped her hand tightly around the base to keep him under her spell. 

Her other hand massaged his balls while she watched his face closely before it moved down to press against his perineum, his loud moan the only response.

"That's what I want to hear," she said with a grin. 

Somehow, her isolation had emboldened her, turned her into this creature who was fueled by every sound of pleasure she could extricate from him, a seductress that lived and died for his needs. 

Sure, it made her sound like the opposite of an advocate for Omega rights, but she was nothing if not a love stricken woman who bowed at the feet of the man who protected her again and again with no concern for himself. 

And she also wanted this man to be hers, forever. 

With her mind on one end, she started again, going full tilt. Her hot breath blew across the glans as she pumped her hand, collecting saliva across his length to act as lubrication.

"I don't care how long it takes, you're going to come down my throat." 

Struck speechless, Ben could only nod his head in a wordless response. 

The color started to rise high in his cheeks as her lips wrapped around him again and she hummed happily when he nudged against the back of her throat. Though she couldn't claim to be an expert at this, she continued while ignoring her gag reflex, sucking harder as tears fell from the corners of her eyes. 

"Oh god, baby. Yeah, yes, just like that." 

His hips started to arch away from the mattress to meet her until she forced him down with a forearm pressed heavily to his pelvis. Her eyes hardened when they connected with his for a moment before she allowed him to fall away, "stay still or this won't end how either of us wants."

Once she had his attention, the movements ended save for some reflexes in the muscles in his abdomen and thighs which were beyond his control. Rey began to hum the _Itsy Bitsy Spider_ when his hand pushed into her hair and tightened enough to pull out more than a few stray strands and then she tasted the tangy but slightly sweet sting of him on the back of her tongue. 

She kept her throat open and swallowed every few seconds until she drank him completely dry. 

Resting on her side next to him, she ran her hands over his hips and chest, feeling where he was thinner than before.

"I'm so glad you're here, that you're back," she murmured as she pressed her face to his bicep and inhaled, his scent easing her back to normalcy.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really not sure if I will end this after the next chapter or not. I guess it all depends on how easily I'm able to write it out. Either way, thanks for reading!

Day after day, strength slowly began to come back to Ben, his body finally becoming one that he himself recognized. 

Rey acted as the dutiful nurse until it was time for her to leave the house. Dressed in pin striped black pants, a sleeveless white blouse, and heels, she twirled in front of him as he plunged onto the couch, his long body taking up the entire piece of furniture. 

A whistle blew through his lips as he held his arms out for her, "Look at you. What's the occasion?"

She stepped into his embrace and leaned down, pushing his hair away from his neck to leave an open mouth kiss there. "Court," she smiled against his skin and breathed him in fully, "I hope to return to you a single woman."

The tension in his body was immediately noticeable, as if his blood was changed out with cement, turning him to a sculpture instead of a man. "I should go with you, for support... What if he tries something?"

"He won't be there, don't worry." She rolled her ankle around, awkwardly fidgeting in a way that was not completely obvious. 

"The only reason I need to go in is because I requested an annulment. I just... being divorced isn't enough. I need to be fully rid of him, his name, his memory. Poe already put through my name change. I'm back to being Rey Daniels for now."

He smiled at that, picking up the meaning of her statement, and pulled her down into his lap, fully enveloping her with his body until just her head was visible. "You don't know how happy it makes me to hear that."

Slowly and with measured difficulty, she extricated herself from his arms, continuing to press him back against the cushions. "I understand. Believe me, if you feel even a speck of how I do right now then I get it."

It took a few more hushed and hurried kisses before Ben allowed her to actually walk away. 

She didn't mention to him that Leia would be arriving to sit with him and help in any way he needed, that was a laugh saved for later as she walked past her soon to be mother-in-law on the sidewalk. 

**Ben**  
_You're in trouble when you get back._

**Rey**  
_Looking forward to it_

___________________________

A few hours later Rey hugged Poe tightly before dropping a loud kiss to his cheek. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," she spoke in a round. 

Poe had the sense to laugh at her excitement, but he understood. 

"You didn't need me at all. I'm just free moral support. Let's get together soon for dinner, all of us, yeah?"

She nodded and walked away with one final exasperated _thank you_ that followed him in the wind. 

The scenery on the drive home seemed different somehow. Memories from years past flashed through her mind and she couldn't remember feeling this at peace with the world when still with her ex-husband. 

The house was silent as she entered and she found Leia wiping down the counter top when she arrived back home. In reaction, the older woman's finger rose to her lips to signal the need to be quiet before nodding to the couch where her son lay strewn out, a book settled on his chest.

Leia leaned back against the counter and whispered, "I think I exhausted him with all my motherly nagging. I take it everything went well." 

It wasn't a question, but a statement drawn from the smile on Rey's face. 

"It's as if I was never married." She stole another glance at Ben, watching his chest rise and fall with each breath. "If only I could petition to have the memories erased too." 

Leia spared her a smile when her hand fell to Rey's shoulder, wishing her a goodnight and some relaxation, before she took her leave.

Every visit of hers left them with a prepared dish of some kind. Though she worked at it again and again, Rey wouldn't win a house-fiancee of the year award any time soon, but that suited her just fine. 

While Ben continued with his nap, she started a load of delicates and sat down at the dining room table to start in on the grocery list for next week. 

The need to feed another adult plus her impending heat meant they needed to stock up more than ever before. 

Rey's mind raced back through time as she thought about the events that led up to her first heat, how terrified she was when it first came on and how inexplicably happy she was to smell Ben in the house.  
___________________

The next Monday found Ben grumpy, sat in the passenger seat of his own truck, unhappy that he couldn't drive himself to the appointment. 

"You know I know how to drive, right? That I've done it before? Without killing anyone?" Her brow rose up in indignation at her Alpha who refused to be sidelined any longer. "If they give you a clean bill of health then you can drive us to the steakhouse for a giant porterhouse on the way home."

With a smile that didn't at all show how frayed her nerves were, Rey merged into the light daytime traffic. 

The scent of the waiting room was strong enough to overpower anything that told tale of its occupants. The Beta patients were taken through the door to the left while the others were shown to the right where specialists with years of research into their biology could handle any ailments or issues better than any Beta doctor might. 

"Ben Solo for Dr. Holdo." Finn sat behind the reception window, checking in patients and answering the phones that seemed to ring off the hook, and though Ben recognized the Omega man, he couldn't quite place him immediately.

_Finn_ ," the young woman whispered just as he placed the phone back down on the dock.

"REY! Hey, girl!" A scattering of any number of items behind the desk announced his exit before he got through the doors and his arms were thrown around her. The two friends spoke in hushed tones while Ben stood aside, his face twitching between amusement and something akin to jealousy.

"Ben, remember that Omega I've been talking to since Leia brought me to the clinic? This is him, this is Finn. Finn, this is Ben." Rey stifled a laugh behind her hand as Finn's gaze wandered over her man. She felt comfortable enough with him to open up like she never had before and that meant that he knew most of the juicy details though she'd forgotten to clue him in to that.

"Happy to meet you finally, Ben. I was so glad to hear about the verdict, but this awful business with the ex... What a dick, right?" 

His eyes danced between the two, arms still wrapped around each other, as they giggled through whispers. After minutes of watching Rey smile and laugh and breathe easier than she usually did, Ben held out his hand for the other to shake. 

"Good to meet you, too, Finn. I understand that you were looking out for our girl while I was inside and I can't thank you enough." 

Only Rey, who was familiar with all the notes of his scent, knew what was lying underneath. 

"Let's have drinks next week?" A few more whispered words were shared between the two before Finn dropped a kiss to her cheek and returned to his post. 

"Down, Alpha," she murmured as her hand drifted down his side to grasp his own, dragging him none too gently to an empty section of seats. A smile turned up while she thought over how silly it was for him to be jealous of another Omega, she wanted no other but him. "We need to talk when we get home."

Tension drew his features taught, his mind racing through all the bad things that would surely follow that statement, until her breathy tones crept in his ear.

"Nothing bad, baby. I promise, but I do love watching you get all worked up."

"You know you shouldn't call me that in public." His words were clipped, each ending with his tongue pressed against his teeth, creating a shiver that ran up from her toes. 

For the first time, Rey felt like she wasn't pretending to be someone else.

"Sorry, Alpha, how could I forget?" A haughty grin told him how very aware she was of every word, though his groan wasn't loud enough to rid her of it.

This was the real Rey, the true Omega, and the person no one else had required or allowed her to be. 

Any response he would've given was silenced by the doctor calling them to the back. "Ben, follow me, please." 

Rey said hello to the older woman while he simply grinned at her, his hand pressed against her lower back as they walked back to the exam room Dr. Holdo specified.

"Up on the table, please, Benjamin, and tell me how your recovery's been going." 

"Amilyn, _please_ ," he implored while Rey snickered into her hands. 

The older Omega's grin shone bright as if she was thoroughly enjoying the torture he had to endure at her hand. "Oh, enough whining. You'll make your girl think I'm some horrible auntie monster or something and that's a nickname we've both grown out of."

When directed, Ben pulled his shirt over his head to allow everyone a good look at what remained of his injuries. 

Dr. Holdo appeared pleased with the progress, peppering them both with questions until all her concerns were allayed and then she started in on the personal questions, until Ben's face burned like the surface of the sun.

Rey, of course, enjoyed it all more than she could properly say and wasn't ready to leave by the time they were dismissed. 

As they all piled back into the hall, one last statement from the doctor caused Rey's cheeks to heat as well, "Time to come off the emergency blockers, dear. You're both ready for your heat."

___________________________________

Any and all preparations required a house full of food and other supplies to keep them from starving to death. Take out wasn't really an option unless they wanted a line of dead delivery men connecting them to more violence. 

The only stop they made on their way back from the doctor was the local Whole Foods; Ben was in a much better mood altogether once he was behind the wheel again. 

Slowly, they filled the cart with everything that could be eaten without the need for any actual cooking.

"Camembert or Brillat Savarin?" He questioned while standing tall over the elaborate cheese display. How someone was meant to make a decision with so many options, especially those she'd never tried or even heard before, she'd never know. It could all be a product of a life always spent wanting, needing just enough that anything would do.

A shrug and because she couldn't make the decision for him, both ended up in the cart with the mass of items that would fill both the refrigerator and pantry to bursting. 

They had a few days before her blood would boil and her body require his to survive without dropping into madness, but there's no calculation that could definitely provide a date or a time to leave them secure enough to venture out. 

The scent of an Omega in near-heat would call to any and all Alphas. So, once they're inside, they'd stay until it ends; this is the last feast before hibernation. 

Ben clearly enjoyed being back to his normal high level Alpha self and he somehow preened in the face of others with his Omega by his side, his hand over hers or on her shoulder and back and anywhere he could touch to just be in contact with her. 

She'd never witnessed this in him before and the pride in stance, his walk, his grin, announced to the world his claim like his bite would by scent. That should come soon, she hoped.

It was as they loaded the last of the bags into the bed of his truck, as she climbed onto the cart with her hands wrapped tightly around the handle bar and he gave her a running start into the carousel, that he noticed a figure standing aside, close enough to be noticed but with enough of a distance that she could still scurry away quickly if she so wished. 

Old Ben, the one who never met her, hadn't spent months in prison awaiting trial, never knew that he could be this complete, _that_ Ben would've hidden this encounter away from her, but this Ben, new Ben, tired of having secrets. 

"Kylo," the woman rasped as she looked over Rey, her eyes showed a level of disgust that hardly gave truth to what she knew of them both. 

"Peera, it's Ben now," he warned with his hand held out for Rey's, the connection calming his agitated nerves. 

The other woman, dark haired and light eyed, never tried to hide the disdain in her features.

"Whether Ren or Solo, you know this isn't over. It will go on until you come back and take your rightful place. Come back or watch everything you love slowly disappear." 

Before he could sense it, Rey stepped forward and put herself between the two old comrades. They looked slightly similar then, both dark haired, young, and fierce in their stature. 

"You expect me to whimper and cry over any threat you make, but you can think again. If you try anything, even something as small as putting a stink bomb in our mailbox, you'll meet both of us instead of one and I spent my life fighting for everything," Rey raged, her fury strong enough that it created a field of separation between the two women. 

"I've just come to deliver a message, not engage in a pissing contest. If you're smart, you'll remember that." And with a wave of her hand, as if that was enough to keep them planted in one spot, she turned and stalked off until they couldn't see her singular figure on the horizon. 

The drive back to the house was a still one.

There was no need for either of them to speak about what occurred in that parking lot so no sound came from either of them until the truck was parked in the garage and all the groceries were put away. 

"You know I'll fight for you like you've fought for me, don't you?" 

Her words were soft as they came out with her lips pressed into the t-shirt that barely contained his large form. "I love you and I'd rather die trying to keep us together than live with us apart."

Without another word in response, Ben turned enough to catch her and their lips were mere millimeters apart before she started speaking again.

"I don't regret anything in my life when it got me here, to you, to us." She delivered a sharp kiss upon his lips. "You've brought me so much happiness and I'm sure you don't even realize it. I'm yours, Ben, fully, so let yourself be mine."

She could see the second her words hit home. Perhaps she never recognized the signs until the reason behind it was within spitting distance, but the Ben who returned to her from jail and through the unconscious hours in a hospital bed wasn't the same one who rescued her from her misery.

The warm air exhaled from his lips gave a moment of lip service to her words. 

"I feel the need to protect you and you'd probably be safer without me." Rey's blood ran cold at those words, her extremities tingling as if they were waking from a long period disuse. "But I can't do it. I can't think of another day without you."

Tears fell from her eyes as everything crashed down on her. Each word was slow to dawn until she caught him staring at her, waiting for a response.

"I love you so fucking much, Ben. Don't make me do this alone ever again."

In an instant, she pounced into his waiting arms until she was wrapped tightly around him. "Take me to our bed," she whispered in his ear as she licked the shell of it, wringing a low groan from him. 

_____________________________

_I am Greer Sonnel and I'm coming to you from the courthouse steps where we're waiting for the trial of Armitage Hux to begin._

_You may recall that this man was the victim in an attempted murder case against Benjamin Solo less than a year ago. After the defendant was acquitted, Mr. Hux tracked down Mr. Solo and his estranged wife, allegedly shooting both of them multiple times._

_We at Channel 11 news tried to reach out to the couple for comment, but their lawyer, Poe Dameron, has refused comment until the trial wraps up._

_As many may remember, there was a lot of discussion in regard to Solo's past and Hux's current relationship with the gang leader Snoke._

_It will be interesting to see if an impartial jury can be found in a city saturated in rumors, gossip, and intrigue._

_We will have more information tonight on our evening broadcast._

_For now, Greer Sonnel signing off in Varykino._  
_____________________________

Very little contact was had with anyone outside the Solo house, even as Poe tried to get them prepared for the upcoming trial. Neither of them intended to participate until they were called to give testimony.

When he woke four days after their last trip out, Ben immediately felt the difference in the stagnant air. His nostrils flared enough to bring the scents in the air deep within, making him dizzy with the atmosphere.

Though Rey continued to sleep, it was clear that her current state of contentment wouldn't last for long. 

"Rey," he breathed before his face disappeared back into the nape of her neck, his lips neared her gland but didn't touch. 

" _Hmmm_ ," she groaned softly and stretched her form as much as his tight grip allowed. Seconds ticked by and rolled into minutes until a shiver wracked through her body.

There was really no need for words, their usefulness minimal after the full heady fragrance of her heat and slick enveloped him, and her breathing started to stutter in response to the pain. 

Her mind and body wouldn't work together, but thankfully he didn't need any suggestions when it came to assisting her through her time of need. With a sigh of _yes, Omega_ Ben pressed his hard cock into her in a long thrust of his hips. 

Their spooned position on their sides didn't allow him to get very deep, the movement of his hips allowing him to thrust in and out of her in quick, rapid jolts, had her sighing between moans. 

"More, more. Give me more, Alpha." Though there were sobs that accompanied their coupling, Rey whined and reached around for something to hold, to scratch, to squeeze, but all she found was the smooth muscle of his back. 

After a few more shallow thrusts, Rey huffed and rolled her body with force until he landed on his back and she wasted no time climbing up his body to take him back inside her own.

"I... I needed this so bad, baby. You and me, this is what makes sense," she swooned through the rise and fall of her hips aided by the powerful muscles in his arms. 

The world was righted, no longer spinning on an axis that distorted it from the normal journey, and as seconds passed into minutes and minutes into hours, she could feel the exuberance traveling through both of them. 

Utterly intoxicated by her, Ben easily lost himself in the undulations of their bodies and she wasn't able to form any more actual words, just moans and exclamations, as she rode his perfect Alpha cock while his hands ran over every inch he could reach. 

The lack of proper sex for months meant it didn't take long for her to fall apart, even without the added stimulation of his fingers, but he lengthened her first orgasm by doing just that. She cried through the intensity of over stimulation and the pain that still wrung through her body with each second. 

"Need your knot, need it now." 

Ben easily maneuvered her back until her skin hit the mattress and his lips wrapped around her right nipple, then he was back inside her as he poured over her body. 

Rey was still able to marvel over his callipygian figure as he moved inside her tight cunt and her nails marked up his back, moving lower when her Omega identity required even a temporary mark to stand as her claim. Fingernail tracks carved down his muscular back until they ended with ten slightly bloodied half-moon indents on his ass.

"I'm gonna fill you up, Rey, get you stuffed full of my cum." 

Her moans egged him on and, faster than he would've preferred, his knot rapidly inflated and locked him inside as his own orgasm overtook him.

Usually the connection of their bodies locking together was enough to set her off again, but she was just shy of the precipice this time and her own fingers flew to her clit to make up the difference. With her fingers and his mouth, she found her oblivion in less than a minute, her body greedily accepting his seed to calm and cool her internal heat.

Moans morphed into pleased hums as he took to nipping the edges of her scent gland. As much as he wanted to sink his teeth into her and finally fully claim the woman who stole his heart, he refused to complete the act while either of them were fogged by heat or rut.

"Soon, baby." All she could garner in response were sweet mewls, the intensity ratcheting down to a level that allowed her to space out just enough to tell him sleep was near. 

"I want it," she replied in a voice she barely recognized, breathy and low.

"There are some things we need to discuss before that, but rest now, my angel. We have time for that later, we have all the time in the world."

The world went dark as her eyes closed and she rolled into the embrace of his arms as they moved into a more comfortable position, the slight tension on his knot causing her to mumble in her light slumber.

He watched her rest, measured her every breath, and ran through so many thoughts while he could be in his own mind for a moment.

The body currently sheltered in his arms embodied his greatest happiness and his darkest fear. 

When the new hour came, known by the distinct hollow sound the hall clock made when one hand passed the 12, both of their cellphones made either a shrill noise or loud vibration that announced a new message. Ben couldn't get himself close enough to allow even his long arms enough space to pick up, but the noises were enough to rouse her from the small amount of sleep she had gained. 

"What is it?" She questioned while still somewhat disoriented and inebriated. 

"Either an email or text message, I'm not sure..." his words rattled off as he reached blindly for his own phone, never allowing his eyes to leave her when she glanced up at him with dewy eyes and red cheeks. 

Surely whatever it was could wait awhile longer, but he knew if it was someone persistent enough, the noises wouldn't stop at one.

It took only a minute to read over the message and fully understand what was written there. "They have a jury."

They had been able to forget about that topic since waking, but it was once again thrust into their conscious world. His fingers typed rapidly for only seconds before the phone was off and put away again.

"Poe will tell the prosecutor that we're currently indisposed. Heat leave will cover it," he explained. 

She nodded her head just enough for him to feel the movement on his chest and though she could move away now that his knot had deflated, it wouldn't be long before she needed him again.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is reeeally late, I'm sorry. I have no excuses other than I got wrapped up in other things and trying to figure out what I wanted in this last chapter was difficult. But here we are at my first complete multi-chapter fic. Wow! Thanks to everyone who took this trip with me, it's been a blast. 
> 
> This is all unbeta'd and so all mistakes are my own.

________

Waking up alone that morning didn't bring the sadness it usually did. Rey marked that up to the fact that she was marrying the man of her dreams, her Alpha, in less than twelve hours. 

The cellphone tucked under her pillow began to buzz and vibrate per the alarm. That meant... 

_Knock, knock, knock_

Her mother-in-law didn't wait for her to open the door, she rarely ever knocked, and let herself in automatically. 

They met in the kitchen, Rey tying off her short kimono style robe, a present from the woman in front of her, while Leia stared down the hallway as if she expected someone else to emerge in a bid to sneak out in the silence. 

"He's not here." 

Leia chose that moment to take a sip of her tea instead of commenting. It was lucky for them that Ben snuck out before the sun even started to peek over the horizon this morning. Staying away wasn't something she ever wanted to do again. 

"There's a doughnut in the bag," Leia sat at the table and opened the large planner they'd dubbed the Disaster Preparedness Diary. "Nail appointment at 9:15 then back here for hair and makeup at 11:00. You won't have any time to eat until the reception, so best to have some carbs now." 

"Yes, ma'am." She was lanced with a look that reminded her so much of her husband. They'd signed their marriage license days ago which meant they were technically already husband and wife. "Yes, ma'am, _mom_."

"Better." 

Once at the nail salon, Leia seemed to relax just enough to allow Rey room to breathe. 

The wedding was a small affair, no bridesmaids or groomsman, only them and the officiant at the altar and a very small group of guests. It was a painstaking process, talking Leia down from the elaborate wedding she'd always dreamed of having for her only child, but fancy and fabulous wasn't their style. They'd compromised on some big items; flower arrangements, ribbon colors, menu options, but Rey and Ben were firm that only their loved ones would be in attendance. The hoi polloi were welcome, the aristocracy was not. 

In the time since she'd met Ben, Rey collected more friends than she'd ever had in the previous years of her life. Friends, family, and more love than she ever imagined possible, even her dreams couldn't quite amount to what she currently had. 

"Ben wants to know how you're feeling, any anxiety?" 

Of course he would know, maybe he even sensed it from wherever he sat at that moment, but she allowed a few deep and long breaths to regulate her heartbeat back down to normal. 

"Please tell your son to be there on time and not give me any more anxiety." Leia snickered into her well polished hands as she typed out the response. 

The nail salon workers, one each on her hands and feet, glanced between the two women as if confused by seeing an older Alpha woman with a young Omega. Whatever they thought, at least they had the decency to appear ashamed and look away once Leia caught their eye. 

_Maybe by the time we have children this won't be such a strange sight_ , she mused in her own mind and nearly gave herself whiplash as she wondered where that thought had come from. Perhaps a certain mother-in-law was slowly brainwashing her way to grandchildren. Fewer things would actually surprise her. 

Simple yet elegant manicures and pedicures painted with a blue bow checked off the disaster preparedness list, they took the car back to the house where she was allowed a short phone call with Ben. 

"I miss you," she sounded whinier than she really should be, but both were beyond the range of caring about such things. 

"Only a few hours left now." With Ben's father long since passed, she'd gotten Finn to help Ben and Finn brought along Poe. She was quite proud of her own matchmaking skills, but worried that the two would become too engrossed in themselves when she needed them to help him. 

"Finn and Poe being useful?"

"Helpful is relative. They are currently arguing over which tie clip and pair of cuff links, you'd think it was a life or death decision." 

She heard their combined "It is!" in the background and struggled not to join Ben in his laughter. Another knock at the door brought the two women responsible for her hair and makeup, so she quickly shut herself into the bathroom for a few more moments of reprieve. 

"Why didn't we go the simple way, Alpha?" 

He huffed straight into the phone and she knew she'd hit the right spot. "Peer pressure, my love." 

Her laugh echoed and bounced around the subway-tiled walls while she examined her reflection in the large mirror. "If that isn't the truth." She wanted these few moments to stretch as long as humanly possible, but the sound of voices in the hall heralded her demise. "Alright, baby. It's time for my torture to begin. Remember, I love you and you better not be late." 

His promise warmed her chest, giving her the strength and stiff upper lip she needed to be manhandled with minor amounts of drama on her part, and the door opened to three faces looking at her expectantly. 

"Ready?" She wasn't, though no one would've listened if she voiced that point or would allow her to move forward without this necessary stage dressing. 

All Rey managed was a few hair suggestions before the professionals pulled back the reins and went to work, Leia flitting around in her periphery with messages of well wishes from the family friends who weren't exclusive enough to land an invite to the event of the year. 

_Please Maker, let me get through my honeymoon without spending a night in jail._

The makeup artist had finished with her face and was moving on to her neck when she slapped away the brush before it came in contact with her scent gland. "Not there." 

"Uh— okay. I'll move on to highlighting your décolletage." 

The last thing she wanted was to look like Wedding Day Barbie, but joining the Solo family came with clear expectations. Why hadn't she agreed to eloping when he brought it up? 

Gum was smacked loudly in her ear as she slapped the brush away _again_. "I said Not. There." 

"Rey, darling, everything alright?" 

She smiled her best fake, sugar coated, barely practiced pageant girl smile and nodded while keeping an eye on Miss Makeup.

____________

The single violinist could be heard back inside the house where she stood, teeth plunged into her bottom lip, and train cascading around her as she paced in front of the curtain covered French doors. Ben was out there, she could almost detect his singular Alpha presence mixed with her favorite aftershave, and she couldn't even be angry that he'd shaved. 

Sure she was nervous, but it was more stage fright than fear of this commitment. This was the moment she truly dreamt of since she was a girl; it picked her up from the deepest of her doldrums and the harshest of nights when despair was imminent. 

A knock to one of the glass panes was her cue and two minutes later, after she'd arranged herself properly and had her bouquet in order, she knocked herself and both doors were pulled open before she began the walk out. 

The Organa-Solo estate was decked out in rustic country wedding finery complete with a white runner up the aisle with weathered wooden seats on either side. At the end of the aisle was the piece that she and Ben had stood firm on beyond all the compromising they did for this day: two different doors of the same height, both painted white and slightly stripped after, but each pulled from separate spaces that together created the altar. That one image described them so beautifully that seeing it brought tears to her eyes before Ben even turned around. 

Her breath caught in her lungs when she took it all in: the doors, the chairs, the burgundy and white flowers everywhere, and her Ben. 

Her husband, dressed in a black velvet tuxedo with a bow tie, always made the beat of her heart skip and dance and twirl at the mere sight of him, but at that moment she feared the possibility of fainting before she found her way forward. Both of her legs moved as if they were trudging through quick dry cement, but here nothing else existed in the world except for them. Stuck inside their magical and expanding bubble, Rey was only feet away when his hand grasped her elbow and led her closer. 

"You look so beautiful," he whispered after she handed her bouquet off to Finn in the seat directly behind her and took in his smiling face and impeccably styled hair. She almost wanted to run her hands through it and absolutely yank until he was close enough to kiss. 

"As do you, my handsome husband." 

The sound of a throat clearing split them apart just enough that they were no longer in jeopardy of upending the entire ceremony from the start. 

While Ben was the only one at the altar when she approached, now Leia stood before them with a book open in her hands. "Who else were you expecting?" The older woman smiled at what remained of her family and cleared her throat even louder to catch everyone's attention. 

"Today we are here to witness the union of Ben and Rey. While Ben's father is only here with us in spirit, I know he couldn't be happier with the love you two share and all that you've done to get here." His hands squeezed hers where they were joined between them and she shared a watery smile with him. "I've always wanted a daughter and I'm happy that I waited all these years for the perfect one." 

A few chuckles mixed in with the audible sighs as Leia and Rey shared a look between them. 

"I shouldn't have to explain that this relationship is like so few we see today even if we ignore their biology and the pheromones which easily explain that these two individuals were born for each other, meant for each other, living each day until fate put one of them directly in the path of the other." 

When Rey tore her eyes away from Ben, she saw the people in attendance—their friends and families and those who were explicitly important to them—and recognized the understanding in their expressions. These people knew what Rey and Ben had battled to get to this day, this exact moment, and the recognition of that made fresh tears bloom in her eyes. 

"Baby, you alright?" Ben whispered to her as his mother droned on about separating the religious aspects of a wedding from the meaningful parts of the ceremony; the uniting of two families and all that. 

She nodded as his left hand disengaged from her grip to wipe away the tears that fell. Deep, deep down she was thankful that Leia dragged her through all the hair and makeup to make sure her face held up to her misty eyes. 

"They've decided to go with the standard vows—"

Rey jumped in after clearing her throat. "We've changed our minds." His eyebrow rose toward his hair line, but he didn't argue. 

"In that case, Ben, please, proceed." 

His tongue peeked out to wet his chapped lips as he thought over the jumble of words trying to string into sentences in his mind. "When I met you, I had no way of knowing that I'd follow you down this yellow brick road. I may be your Alpha, but you've had a hold on me since that moment we collided in your doorway. I can't imagine a life without you by my side and I will keep you there forever, no matter what. Be my wife, be my life and my light and keep me from the darkness and I promise to spend all my days making sure you know that." His jaw moved like it always did when he was anxious, but that bright smile that he saved just for her appeared only seconds later. "I happily take you to be my wife," and he removed the ring from the pocket of his tuxedo and slid the vintage band onto her finger. 

After a few deep breaths, Rey finally found her voice and started speaking while she was still shaky, "I didn't have anything prepared but... I think it's only proper I let my heart speak for itself instead of kowtowing to tradition. Our lives are anything but traditional and I think a part of me would be reaching out for you even if we hadn't met that day. I'm sure someone would say it's just an Omega pandering to an Alpha, but they don't know us. Ben... I love you more than I can properly pronounce and I know I would die in an instant if you no longer walked this earth. Please be my husband—" and her vows ended on a hard sob. 

Silence followed until Leia added in, as quietly as possible, "Rey, dear, you need to make a statement agreeing to the vows." 

"Oh, right. Yeah. Yeah, I guess you can be my husband if I can be your wife." They both laughed at the frivolity of that while they stood there, dressed to the nines, in front of so many people. It didn't take long before everyone, including Leia and the photographer who scampered around them, were holding their sides as the peals of laughter completely took over. 

Coming back to herself, Rey took the wedding band from where it sat loosely around her thumb and slipped it onto his finger where it fit perfectly. 

They both turned their eyes to Leia and her nod set them in motion, Rey practically leapt into his arms and caught his lips in a deep, feverish kiss that endured through the lengths of hundreds of heart beats, thousands of breaths, but it still wasn't enough. Their friends cheered as her fingers gripped the hair at his nape, refusing to allow them to separate until she was lifted into his arms and the shock of the change in her gravity broke their kiss. 

"I am so pleased to introduction to you Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Solo!" He groaned at the use of his full first name as she came back down to the ground, but refrained from arguing and threw their clasped hands in the air in celebration.

Finn handed back her bouquet and eschewing the normal practice of walking back down the aisle, they turned to face the double doors that stood as the simple backdrop for the ceremony. With smiles over their shoulders and their hand on one door knob each, both twisted their handle and pushed in until they managed to slip through, leaving the past behind them. 

"Fancy meeting you here, Mrs. Solo." 

"Ah, I had a date with my husband. I was told he was waiting just inside this room, but I haven't found him." 

Their eyes took in the reception area in front of them: circular tables dressed in white tablecloths, an open bar, long buffet tables filled with sweets, cookies, and their cake and a few gimmicky pieces Rey and Finn found during deep dives on Pinterest. The seating assignments were draped over wire and a note ordered each guest to replace their name card with a polaroid selfie. 

She was still taking it in, her eyes slightly wet, when strong arms encircled her waist, pulling her back against him. "Have I told you how beautiful you are?" His lips barely skimmed the long column of her neck, creating goosebumps and raised hairs, "and you wear this? You want to make me crazy, don't you?" 

Her strapless dress was molded to her upper body with a full lace overlay that hugged her sternum and fell down her arms to create sleeves. It was with purpose and intent that the dress left her mating gland bare in front of him. 

"Maybe." 

If it wasn't considered indecent to touch her there in public, Ben would've spent minutes or perhaps hours sucking on that particular patch of skin, but he lingered only long enough for the photographer to catch a quick series of pictures. 

"Rey! Ben!" The guests descended around them, pulling them immediately from the boiling sense of arousal they were wading in while alone, and began to greet their wonderful friends and family. There were a few people she doesn't recognize, and while Ben was three people deep, they were kind enough not to make her guess as to their names or relations. 

"I was his dad's best friend," the tall, bearded man explained as he tried to force her into burrowing in his chest with his hug, "welcome to the family." 

Another man, this one tall and dressed in a decidedly extravagant manner, kissed her hands and allowed his lips to linger just on the other side of appropriate. "And if Leia had made the right decision, you'd be calling me dad." 

Rey couldn't help or stop the laugh that escaped at those words and the picture it painted of her mother-in-law who she found so proper. "Tell me more," she whispered conspiratorially before the woman in question showed up to whisk both men away in the name of catching up. 

When she was finally able to take a breath, her eyes caught on the twinkle lights wrapped around the perimeter of the yard and somehow, everything she ever wanted was within the span of fifty yards. Not just the people who filled her life so full to bursting, but also the love that accompanied them. 

She could feel the electricity when Ben caught her eye through the sea of people just as easily as she smelled his disapproval when Poe and Finn sandwiched her in a hug between the two of them. 

"You're making my new husband very unhappy." 

"A little jealousy will spice things up, go with it." Poe laughed it up, but both Omegas shared the same look. 

"I don't think murder is on the menu tonight," Finn posited, dropping his arms from the bride and taking a step back. 

Just then, as if called over by her slight annoyance, Ben appeared and whisked her hurriedly into his arms. "I like you, Dameron," he commented with his face buried in her neck, "but I won't hesitate to kill you." 

"Ah, but who will defend you in court?" Poe seemed more at ease than he should've been and Finn tried to grab at him, tried to lead him away. 

"My mother and I have a standing agreement that she will defend me should the need arise. We'll blame it on Alphas protecting what's theirs and all that." 

Their friends walked away laughing and she felt her own bubbling of joy being around all these people who loved her, no questions asked. 

"What do you say we get out of here?" 

She pressed her hand to his chest, putting distance between them to clear her mind. "Ben, no. No. We're here for the entire party, so buckle up." 

They fell back in with the crowds of people gathered around tables, breezed around the dance floor in each other's arms, and finally ended up at their table after what felt like hours. They were used to exhaustion, the two of them, but this was the kind that brought smiles to their faces. Being at the high table meant they were first to be served and Rey was ashamed to admit she had no idea what was on the menu. 

"Knowing my mother—" Ben whispered in her ear as she watched the wait staff bring over their salads, "and I like to think I do—the food will be the one place she's gone over the top because she had complete autonomy." 

Sure enough, he was right. Salad with goat cheese, strawberries, and candied walnuts was followed by entrees of either chicken, duck, or salmon with polenta cakes and roasted carrots. She felt truly loved and understood when the plate deposited in front of her had both chicken and salmon while Ben received the duck. 

"Someone loves you," her husband voiced the echo that moved through her mind. He cut off a small portion of his own protein and moved it to her plate. "Just so you know, I love you too." 

The hours passed by her much faster than she wanted. In all honesty, she hadn't realized how much she wanted to celebrate this day until it was here, but now it would be gone before she could save it all away in her memory. That saddened her, though she knew everyone around her would help her live through it again and again if she only asked. 

"What would you like in return, husband?"

His breath was quickly pulled in, like it was whenever she referred to him as Alpha, and she planned to use both from now on if he ever needed a leveling. 

"A kiss, I suppose, for now." 

She brought him closer with her hand under his chin, looking into his perfect, flecked brown eyes, and shared a smile before their lips met again, unhurried and unaware of the looks of those around them. This was their day and theirs alone, no one could take it and no one could force them into acting in a manner that was so unlike either of them. "I wish I could have you right here," Rey whispered against his lips. 

" _Omega_." His tone was a warning, a threat should she continue on that path. 

"You know I want you, Alpha," her hand fell to his thigh and grasped the strong muscles there, "You'll see." 

With a wicked grin, she returned to cutting up small bites of food, savoring each and every piece as Ben silently fumed next to her. It was so easy to get him going, but it always took her along for the ride and she started to feel the stirrings of her own arousal. 

Raspberry and lemon cake was cut and bites were shared while they both smeared the frosting onto the other's face, kissing the mess away as they laughed and smiled. 

"Ladies and gentlemen," Finn stood at the center of the dance floor and spoke as loudly as he could to get everyone's attention, "the bride and groom ask that all single men come to the floor for the garter toss to be followed by single women and the bouquet toss." 

Ben dragged a solitary chair to that same spot and took his wife's hand to deposit her there. Whoever was responsible for playing the music put on one of those songs that generally accompanied the lead up to a sex scene in a movie, causing Ben to laugh into her skirt as his hands skimmed over her soft ankles and calves, moving slowly to find the bit of lace wrapped around her upper thigh. His fingertips brushed against her barely covered center, earning a sharp gasp in reward, and he tried not to let his enjoyment of that response show. Slowly and with calculated finesse, he retrieved the garter and held it up to a round of applause. 

"I'll remember that," Rey warned, standing up and nibbling ever so slightly on the skin of his neck before she stepped away. Men flocked to the floor, most trying to stumble as far back as possible to avoid catching the garter and not incur the significance that came with it. 

"Ready?" He looked over his shoulder, surveying the field of people behind him as he went through three practice throws before letting the featherlight item fly out of his hand. Just as he planned, it landed on the shoulder of Poe Dameron who appeared both shocked and fearful of the white and blue lace. 

Rey strode over to Poe and Finn and slipped her garter into his suit pocket. "Should I just give this to you now?" She wiggled her bouquet below Finn's nose, happy to hear laughter leave their mouths even if pink appeared high in their cheeks. "I guess I must be fair... Ladies, up here!" She waited patiently for the crowd to gather and caught sight of Leia attempting to skirt away until Rey stepped out of her heels and pulled the other woman in. "You are technically single," she said in hushed tones. 

Unlike Ben, she gave no warning when she turned around and no test tosses either, but the number of women jumping for the bouquet was much larger than the number of men hoping for the garter. A few literally jumped up to try and grab the bundle of flowers, two of them falling to the floor and rolling around until it was in the hands of only one. Doubled over in laughter, Rey struggled to maintain her breathing without wetting herself. 

People were starting to leave, wishing the couple many happy years with winks and nudges that made her slightly uncomfortable. They'd decide to reproduce on their own schedule, thank you very much. 

"I have a surprise for you." Ben had grabbed another beer from the bar, knocking back a few sips before extricating himself from his employees, and looked down at Rey where she sat, rubbing her tired feet. 

"Surprise, you say?" 

"Mhm, but it means leaving for... reasons." She avoided his eyes which always made him immediately start to worry. 

"Reasons? Hmm." 

"If you're ready to leave, I can expand on that a little more." 

With one last long sip, he emptied the last of his beer and helped her back up to her feet. "Tell me all about it, please." 

They hugged and kissed the people still around, the people who cared for them so much, and made promises for visits in the near future. Ben was ready to start the walk to where the truck was parked on the street, but Rey pulled him into the house first, ambushing him just inside the French doors. "We'll do it here, right now." 

Rey directed him to lift her up onto the kitten island, all the while his face shone with bewilderment, and she bestowed a lingering kiss on him before she turned her back to him. "I want you to bite me, claim me, make me fully yours." 

"But—" 

"I know, _I know_ , we haven't really talked about this, but I want it. I know it will put me immediately into a reactive heat which will make for a fun honeymoon, don't you think?" 

Instead of speaking, he ran his finger across the edges of what they were discussing without mentioning it, her mating gland. They both knew he wanted it, it was ingrained in his chromosomes that he needed to cut his teeth on her skin there lest he perish from holding himself back. "Here, in my mother's house?" 

"Yes, so hurry up before anyone walks in." 

There was a normal preamble to moments like this when people did it right, but they'd spent the past few days making everything as official as modern society allowed, so the ceremony of it was unnecessary. 

"Last call for objections," Ben breathed with his lips hovering just above her skin. 

"Do it, Ben. Make me yours, make it permanent." 

A growl started in his chest, growing until it crescendoed to a decibel level that should've rattled the window panes if he hadn't muffled the sound by his teeth breaking through her skin. Only a small whimper escaped her until he started to purr, the vibrations wracking her body in a way she wasn't prepared for. Ben's arms wrapped around her waist, yanking her smaller form to his chest, and she was enveloped, fully, in this man. 

Nothing could've made her happier, no end to this day could top that. 

"Baby, please." She wasn't sure what exactly she was begging him for, but with her blood in his mouth he somehow knew and lifted her dress just enough for his fingers to slip inside her, past her underwear and into her velvety warmth. In a matter of seconds, she fell apart on his fingers, singing his praises and her love in a rush to get everything out while her mind was still connected to her mouth. 

"We need to go." 

It took only four words for get her off the counter, through the house, and into the pickup truck. She could smell his exhilaration through the air, in the tremble of his fingers where they sat on her hand, and how he continued to bite down on his bottom lip as he drove. 

The flames crept through her veins faster than any previous heat had, a prime example of spontaneous combustion for the record books, and she was nearly on top of his lap by the time they parked into the garage. 

"S'hurtsss," she droned on as she was hefted out of the car, reminiscing about the first time she was brought to this same house in similar form. Oh, how different things were. 

"Almost there, just give me another minute, my love." 

Leia made sure the house was fairly clean and put together before she left for the ceremony, meaning they didn't have to stumble over random pairs of shoes in the entry way, and Ben took an immediate left for their bedroom. 

"I'm going to knot you so deep you'll taste me on the back of your tongue." 

All the electrical synapses in her brain fired at the same time. "Yes, give it to me now, right now. I need it." She moaned into his skin, just below his ear, and kicked her feet to try and lose her underwear on the way, but she only succeeded in getting them to her ankle when she was unceremoniously dropped onto the mattress. If she were wearing anything ordinary, anything she didn't care about ruining, removing everything wouldn't have been so trying, but she was buttoned into the dress and without his help she'd ruin the prettiest thing she ever owned. 

Up on her hands and knees, she shot him a look over her shoulder. "This dress will be in pieces if you don't unbutton me now." Her back arched up like a cat following the hand of their owner as his fingers ran over the line of buttons that kept her in. It was impossible for her to stay quiet for long. "Please, Ben, _please._ "

Where he normally was so soft and caring during her heats, tonight found him pushing at every one of her nerves until she was nearly out of her mind in her delirium. "Please, what, Rey?" 

A groan was her first response and she ended on a whine when his fingers finally brushed against her naked skin, "You know what I need, what only you can give me. Give me that knot, Alpha." 

It was always that simple, wasn't it? Speak of his new title or his designation and he was putty in her hands, but now he didn't crumble immediately, his body wasn't searching for her, searing her like he always did. 

"Let me take my time, Omega. It's only once that I get to take my new wife and I intend to do it properly." 

She moaned loudly, the sound growing inside her throat until it was too strong for her own ears, and she clamped her hand over her own mouth. 

"No, I want to hear you. Actually, I want everyone to hear you and know that it's Ben Solo, barely acquitted attempted murderer, who is making you feel this way." She was nothing if not obedient, especially now as the guilt from his statement sunk in, leaving her shivering and near to tears. 

Her dress was finally unbuttoned enough and pulled over her hips, making her twist and turn to get the tight fabric fully off, and she looked up at him from her position on her back, sliding her foot down his still completely clothed body. "Off, Alpha, right now." 

With a raised eyebrow and smug grin etched across his face, he started the slow process of unbuttoning his dress shirt, alleviating the stress that his broad chest put on the poor stretch of white cotton and watching as her hands ran down the same part of her body, easily cupping her small breasts.

Words were useless when they were this far gone, their combined scent mingling in the eaves and she couldn't be even close to satisfied until she felt his naked body on hers, but he continued to move at a glacier's pace, enjoying the emotions that crossed over her face as he made her wait. 

It wasn't until her hand dipped toward her cunt that he made a snap movement, pinning the limb by her head as his large frame hovered over her, still in his pants with the button closure popped open. "That's mine." 

She bit down on the flesh of her bottom lip, staring him down while he stood immovable above her, "So take it. _Please_." Just on the bounds of begging, she wasn't too proud to whine for what she needed, but he used his free hand to yank down his zipper and pull his rigid cock free. 

The amount of slick spread over her thighs and onto the duvet was nearly indecent and she should've been ashamed except that he delighted in how ready she was for him. 

The time for teasing had passed with each rational thought as it left her and she was thankful that her recognition of time was nothing more than a speeding blur of movement when he finally pressed himself against her entrance, easily slipping in when her legs wove around his hips. One hard push of his hips and she was stuffed full of him, left to enjoy to slight stretch he always brought even when he had prepared her as much as possible. 

"You feel fucking amazing, Omega, _wife_."

It was all too fast for the both of them; heats weren't the time for slow and sensual and her body reminded her of that as her womb cramped, eliciting anxious groans from her mouth, certainly not the sounds he always hoped for as they connected. 

She always loved his body, each and every muscle, mole, and scar, but her favorite thing about Ben Solo was how he showed his love for her. His cock was made for her, an absolute perfect fit, especially now as he filled her so full and tore every whimper out of her body with the momentum of his thrusts. 

Her fingers raked down his chest, leaving angry red trails down his skin until his hips no longer held any control and he spilled inside her, mere seconds before his knot inflated and she was unceremoniously thrown off the edge just as quickly. 

"Thank you, thank you, thank you." Her praise was for his skills as well as the cure he always provided so willingly, his spend the only thing to ever calm her heat ravaged insides. Alpha semen would stop the cramps, but his entire being was a balm to all her ills. 

As her blood finally lulled down to a simmer, she mapped out every inch of his skin she could touch while they were still pierced together. She hated heats, hated being an Omega most of the time, except in these moments when everything screeched to a halt and it was only the two of them, alone, while the rest of the world went on outside. 

"My mom's bringing over the gifts tomorrow."

"Remember to tell her to leave them in the garage. I'd rather she not walk in on... this." 

They managed to keep Leia from walking into the house and encountering them in the act or locked together with Rey straddling her son's body. Even with locks, it was clear the only thing that kept her out was the possibility of seeing things she would never be able to fully clean from her mind. 

A few items were unwrapped during the small spell that allowed her room to breathe and the two of them to separate.

"Is this a joke?"

Her eyes left the box of stemless wine glasses and took in the look of bewilderment on her husband's face. "What?" She could see a white book, but any lettering was too faint for her to make out. 

"A book for all our firsts," he said as if he was reading a spoiler for the new season of Game of Thrones, his face twisted into a frown. 

"I'd love to know what you thought the first time you scented me before we jump into the deep end and talk about our first time apart while you were in jail." Her eyelashes fluttered at him as her chin rested upon her hands where they were clasped over his chest. 

"You were a pain in the ass, at first sight, but I quickly learned otherwise. I'm not sure there are enough pages in this book to describe it all." Ben flipped through the pages, seeing the tips and suggestions listed in the corner of each page like first birthday or first wedding anniversary. Theirs would veer so far off the norm. 

Rey scoffed in response, "You're lucky you're so attractive, Alpha, or you'd be sleeping alone tonight saying such things about me." 

He tried to keep his lips from quirking up into a smile at that. "Let's think about how to describe the first heat of our married life."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Rey's wedding dress](https://m.imgur.com/a/kh1ptmM)   
>  [Adam's tuxedo from the 2019 Golden Globes is what he wore to their wedding](http://cdn01.cdn.justjared.com/wp-content/uploads/headlines/2019/01/adam-driver-john-david-washington-2019-golden-globes-social.jpg)


End file.
